Can I Be Your Sidekick?
by Old Soldier
Summary: With the help of a time travelling monkey idol, conquering the world's no big; Shego's done it six times already. The sitch...hanging on to it. Seventh time's the charm? Maybe; perhaps training a new sidekick is in order. Slightly AU. Some Kigo later, Kimmie's only ten now.
1. Kimmie's New Sitter?

**Can I Be Your Sidekick?  
Chapter One**

**Kimmie's New Sitter?**

_**Prologue: **_

The attractive teenager stared at herself in the mirror, examining her flawless, peaches and cream complexion. Hands caressing her taut, athletic body the young woman turned to look at her middle-aged self asleep in the cryo-chamber, _Man I wouldn't last one round with Cupcake in that body, _and then shifted her gaze to an elderly man wearing a lab coat.

"The genetic material I retrieved from your brother should keep your skin from re-acquiring the pigmentation," explained the man, "I couldn't do anything about the hair and eyes. But then green eyes aren't unusual and the green highlights in your hair can be easily explained away as cosmetic in nature. In any case, you should be less conspicuous to the Resistance if they go looking for you provided you minimize the use of your power outside of your Team Go persona."

"Aces Uncle," exclaimed the raven-haired teen, "Figure I don' mind blowin' two and a half billion for a balls-nasty makeover."

"Are you sure about this?" inquired the uncle, "I believe you're taking a long shot over a theory."

"Don' go all billy on me now Uncle," she said, "I got the downlo from momma prime when you did the memory dump and she don' shiv; the last two timelines prove we sooo need pumpkin and her spud if we don' want maximum checkout on a global scale. Just have to get to her while she's still young. Who knows, maybe seventh time's the charm, huh?"

"Uh, is there a reason for the lexicon change?" asked the confused scientist.

"I was a punk at seventeen, I was rejected by the rejects. My posse and I called ourselves mutants and I _owned_ Go City Central High, Eastwood and West Park; they called me The Supreme One and we had our own way of talkin'," explained the raven-haired teen smugly, "I played hero 'cause I could trash spuds without gettin' busted. Slide the eyes here Unc', I'm a mutant again."

The uncle raised a sceptical eyebrow as he handed over a 32-terrabyte external hard drive, "So where did the teaching degree come from?"

"Um, I taught my posse to fight and thieve, and…I…kinda… liked the teaching part," responded the niece quietly, "Okay, okay I'll learn tween slang and remember to speak like a mundane; and I hand this drive over to you when I get there to explain why my skin is normal again. He'll, uh; you'll go for this, Uncle Percy?"

"My part in this is guaranteed my dear; it's your part which has the most variables," replied the scientist.

With a sigh the young woman, clad in a green and black body suit, picked up a small stone monkey statue and dropped into a hole of swirling red and orange light on the floor, "S_eventh time's the charm…."_

_**Early 1997:**_

Shego stormed into her green and black appointed bedroom in the Go Tower and slammed the door shut, her entire body shook from a combination of shock, fear and fury; the green glow about her gloves was brighter and hotter than usual making her hands ache as if they were going to explode.

"That pedantic and pompous imbecile," growled the enraged teenager who then screamed out, "HEGO! You stupid spud, your 'procedures' almost got me and a bunch of innocents DUSTED, AAUUUGH!"

"_No shiv, we coulda been road pizza, I mean MAXIMUM checkout. That's IT, I so quit. I'm gonna billy out tonight," _she thought to herself. Shego heard a light knock at her door followed by her older brother's rather timid voice.

"Sis, can we…"

"…Rrrrr, just shut it!" shouted the green-skinned teen, shooting a double-fisted blast of plasma at the door. The impact not only destroying the door but a few feet of concrete around it, sending Hego against the opposite wall of the corridor, the discharge relieving the ache in her hands. Fortunately for him, his power protected him from being killed outright by her green blasts; however the impacts still hurt a lot and thus he lay stunned.

"_Bawd! That was balls nasty. Did I just THROW my plasma?"_

A flash of red light caught the young woman's attention.

"I sooo know what you're going through right now sis," drawled a voice behind Shego. She spun to see 'herself' standing right in front of her.

The twin continued, "Oh, and you actually don't billy out tonight, I…you…we…oi, end up finishing college. Actually, you _are_ leaving and I'll cover your classes for you. Oh, and I believe you just threw your first plasma ball just now, practice that it'll come in handy."

"_Oh wow, I thought Uncle Percy was only still working on my clone, bawd she looks balls-nasty though, totally rad. And real skin! Aces! But what's with the monkey statue with the backwards head?_ _Wait, college?"_

The doppelganger reached out and touched her which was followed by a flash of swirling red light then she discovered herself in front of a green throne set high up in what appeared to be a wide, circular throne room. A large, heavily muscled man with blue skin turned around and said, "Ah, Supreme One, welcome back."

Back in the room, the alternate Shego placed her statue on the dresser and carefully removed the head which, according to Monkey Fist would lock the current timeline in place and theoretically prevent interaction with time-monkey users from other time streams. There was no guarantee against the Chrono-Manipulators of the Resistance.

"_Oi, I can't believe I'm placing faith in the arcane theories of a man who wants to be a monkey king."_

She then placed a modified Team Go mask on the dresser, _"Even__ if it is just a party mask…ick…but Princess hasn't seen Shego yet, gotta hide my face_,_"_ took a deep breath, shuddered, grimaced, _"I__t's part of the plan,"_ and called out, "Oh Hego, talk about composure… total lack of; are you alright?"

_**Early spring, 1998: Fifth Grade, Middleton Elementary**_

Tara nudged her classmates impatiently. "C'mon Amanda, Jessica pay attention, this is the good part I was tellin' ya about."

Three sets of eyes turned to watch the scene unfolding before them. Two lion cubs were trapped in the tree line across the field by three marauding hyenas, their obscene laughter sending shivers of disgust through the young girls. As the scavengers circled, their attention focused on the cub that spit and snarled at them, ignoring the timid one.

The lioness was taking advantage of that distraction, slinking carefully across the field to take up a good attack position. Trespassing on her home territory was bad enough, threatening her pride was getting personal.

"Is she going to attack all three of them by herself?" gasped an incredulous Amanda, "There ain't no way she can win."

"Relax, I'm pretty sure I know how it turns out," assured Tara as she followed the action intently.

The fair-skinned blonde exhaled an enthusiastic, "Yes,", as her cohorts covered their eyes in fright.

The three hyenas' snarling attack was interrupted by ….

The little redhead's, "Haii-yaah," which was enough to cause the three bullies to hesitate for a moment, just long enough for her flying kick to land solidly between the shoulder blades of Arnie Custer. She had to take him out first since he was the only other kid in the schoolyard who knew kung fu. He gasped as he was bowled over with the wind knocked out of his lungs.

"Kim Possible?" exclaimed Nate as the petite girl landed in a crouch.

"Why … you always … surprised when she shows up…? You … know … she always does," wheezed Arnie as he tried to recover.

"I dunno," answered Nate, a larger rather brutish looking boy.

"Yeah, heh, heh, always surprised," giggled Zach who was actually shorter than Kim and had an almost troll-like appearance. He picked up a stick to use as a cudgel, "Let's get to it before the yard hag shows up."

"Yeah, right," replied the slow-witted boy as an evil grin crossed his face.

Kim was flanked by Nate on her left and Zach on her right. They closed in on her simultaneously. _ "__Could this be any easier?" _She catapulted into the air , timing her jump perfectly and snapping her legs out to either side, hearing the satisfying crack of feet connecting with chins.

"Ron, grab Reager and get out of here," yelled the little rescuer as she landed lightly on her feet. The blond boy grabbed hold of his compatriot and led him out of the way of the melee, joining up with Tara who had Amanda and Jessica in tow. Behind them followed the inevitable mob of bloodthirsty spectators.

Her ponytails flopping about her head, the little warrior landed in a low offensive posture and felt a roundhouse kick from a recovered Arnie brush the top of her hair. With a growl she lashes out with a foot to his leg; a popping noise was followed by a screech of pain. Kim sprang up, assumed a defensive stance and looked around to see the other two on the ground moaning through bloody mouths.

The little redhead was vaguely aware of the cheering from the kids around her as she spoke to her vanquished foes,

"I told you jerks I was tired of you picking on the kids in the schoolyard, I promised that I'd stop you and I keep my promises."

She heard a warning shout from Ron as the crowd quieted down then felt a heavy hand spin her around to stare into the traumatizing gaze of Miss Hatchett who was on yard duty.

"I suppose you just forgot the promise you made to not get into any more fights, eh Kimberly Ann?" said the intimidating teacher in her gravely voice. "Wait for me at the vice-principal's office while I get these other miscreants taken care of at the nurse's office."

"Yes, ma'am," replied a despondent Kim as she turned toward the school building. As Ron and Tara walked beside her on the way the she thought to herself, _ "__Aw maann, busted by the yard hag. Well, I managed to dodge the yard hags all winter while dealing with those goons. At least I finally got those goons good this time, kung fu rocks."_

"Don't worry Kim," said Tara, "Jessica, Amanda and I saw the whole thing. We'll stick up for ya."

"Yeah KP," added Ron, "And Reager says since you stepped up and kicked butt, he'll try to get the other guys they beat up to back you with the Veep. KP, I think you just made hero, ah-booyah!"

The green-eyed girl was in a major funk. The fight had occurred at morning recess and it was almost afternoon recess. It used to be she was in and out of Mr. Barkin's office, with a note for her parents, inside of twenty minutes. This instance, however, Kim marked time on the old wooden bench in the office, which she only left when the matronly school secretary escorted her to the girls' room at lunch break. Upon returning, the redhead saw her best friend waiting on the bench.

"Brought your lunch KP, how ya holdin' up? Rufus has been worried," said the concerned blond.

"I'm starting to wonder what's going on, I've never been held in the office this long without any word," replied Kim as she began munching on a sandwich. "You know anything Ron?"

"Word is you've done some real hurtin' this time, Nate and Zach are missing teeth, and Arnie's left knee is dislocated," replied the boy with awe in his voice. "And they were taken to the hospital in an ambulance, KP!"

"Really?" asked the stunned girl.

The conversation halted briefly as a teacher entered the office to drop off a pile of papers. The secretary examined it then took it into the vice-principal's office.

"That's been happening all morning," Kim noted to her best friend, "Each time it's a different teacher and each pile of papers looks like homework 'cause some of them are written in crayon. Since when does Barkin grade papers?"

Ron shrugged and passed her a muffin he had baked the night before. As his friend bit into the treat with gusto the blond's eyes opened wide with concern, he poked Kim and pointed behind her. She was startled to see a policeman enter the office.

The secretary looked up and said, "Go right in Officer Hobble, Mr. Barkin is expecting you." The peace officer nodded and entered the vice-principal's office. The top half of the wall was windowed so the young students could clearly see the two men speaking to each other although only the deep rumble of Barkin's voice could be heard. Kim's insides turned to ice imagining the rest of her childhood in prison, so she curled up hard against her best friend and grabbed his hand for comfort.

"Ron, I'm not liking this," said the worried redhead.

"Looks like bad road ahead KP," responded the blond. "I wish Rufus was here, I'd send him inside to listen in."

"Ron! So not the time for invisible friends," snapped Kim.

The end of lunch break was punctuated by the sound of hundreds of feet marching through the halls accompanied by animated conversations. Kim heard her name being called from the office door and turned to see Tara, Amanda, and Jessica looking at her with questioning expressions on their faces. The little detainee rolled her eyes toward the vice-principal's office; the girls gasped when they saw the policeman, and scurried off.

The secretary stepped out from behind her desk turned to the blond and said, "It's time for you to go to class now Ronnie."

"No way, I'm staying with my friend, she needs me now," replied the boy with conviction.

The grey-haired woman put her glasses back on and chose not to push the issue. The blond and the redhead were inseparable; she remembered how it took some people until those kids were almost half way through first grade to realize they weren't twins. In the meantime, Barkin and Hobble continued their discussion….

"Ok, let's see if I've got this straight," said the police officer in his Irish brogue, "Arnie, Nate and Zach are all in fifth grade. Parenthetically, young Arnie is a novice kung fu student. When the incident occurred they were in the act of beating up two fifth graders by the names of Ron Stoppable and Ron Reager."

"That's correct," responded Barkin who held up a sheaf of papers, "And judging by this stack of hand-written testimonies, it seems as if half the school yard witnessed the incident."

"To hear young Nate tell it, the boys were assaulted by a six-foot-thirteen creature with green teeth," informed Hobble, "Taking exaggeration into account I'd assume some high school student trespassed and committed the assault on the three boys. I understand you have the assailant."

"Yes I do," rumbled the school's disciplinarian, "However, not so much six-foot-thirteen with green teeth as four foot nine with green eyes. Officer Hobble…Kim Possible." He nodded in the direction of the little girl through his office window to where she was sitting on the bench. The officer turned to look in surprise at the petite figure curled up on the bench next to a little boy.

"Furthermore," added the vice-principal, "According to the testimonies I've read, Possible went to the defence of Stoppable and Reager only after Arnie, Nate, and Zach began their assault. By the way, she is in the fifth grade also and it so happens she's also a novice kung fu student which explains the damage she dealt."

"Fifth grade?" asked Hobble, "Well, I guess you'll be handling this Steve?"

"That's affirmatory Sean," replied Barkin.

Kim stared wide-eyed as Officer Hobble exited Barkin's office, gripping Ron's hand that much tighter when he looked hard at her before turning and leaving the school office.

"Kim, I'm gonna need that hand back," gasped the blond as he winced from the surprisingly strong grip of his ten year old friend.

"Sorry Ron," apologized the young girl as she released her grip, "Aw man, I don't think I'm going home with just a note this time."

The two kids jumped when they suddenly heard the voice of Mrs. Possible as she entered the school office, "Hi Ron. No Kimmie, I believe a note would be rather superfluous don't you think?" To the school secretary she said, "Hi Marge, Steve asked me to come speak with him."

Kim flinched; it was common enough for a parent to be on a first name basis with the school secretary, it was much more disconcerting when they were on a first name basis with the vice-principal.

"Hi Anne, yes just go right in, he's been expecting you," answered the office administrator.

"Thanks Marge, come along Kim," said the senior redhead as she entered Barkin's office.

"Well Anne, that's how it stands. The boys will be off two weeks to recover so their suspensions will run concurrently, get three weeks detentions, and in light of their antisocial behaviour will have to stay inside during lunch and recess for the remainder of the school year," said Steve, "The damage done by your daughter is on a whole other level however; normally that is grounds for expulsion."

The blue-eyed mother's eyebrows shot up at that comment. The daughter cringed as she listened intently while staring down at the floor.

The vice-principal continued, "But since the circumstances are extenuating, I can keep it to a one week suspension plus three weeks detention, her saving grace being her grades in class and the supporting testimony of witnesses. With the exception of two classes, Kim is a straight A student; the aberrant courses being HomeEc with a C minus and PhysEd with an A plus-plus."

The physician was puzzled, "Ok, I can understand the HomeEc grade but how does one get a double plus?"

"Anne, your daughter can outrun, out jump, and out climb anyone in the school, bar none, _"A__lthough that Nelson lad isn't far behind_._" _ She's untouchable on the dodgeball court and the instructor we brought in for the gymnastics portion of the PhysEd curriculum was gushing something about Kim and the Olympics," reported the disciplinarian, then glancing at Kim added, "And apparently she is now untouchable in the schoolyard."

"_Really? Spankin'," _thought the junior redhead, her spirits lifting a little.

"Ok Steve what do you have in mind?" asked the intrigued mother.

"This is what I have in mind," said Barkin, "Instead of regular detention, she attends remedial HomeEc thrice a week until her grade improves. Furthermore, she will be in library lockup the other two days. This will last a minimum three weeks, if her grades improve in HomeEc by the end of three weeks she will be released from that but remain on library duty to the end of the year. If she can stay out of any further trouble, she will be allowed to participate in this year's district track meet since she promises to be one of our star athletes. That, my good woman is the best I could arrange with the school board to avoid expulsion."

Anne turned around to look at her daughter, disappointed blue eyes locked with contrite green ones.

The school bell rang, indicating the end of the day, the start of the weekend and precipitating the inevitable stampede to leave the school grounds.

Mother and daughter came out of Barkin's office. "Let's go kids," said Anne, "I still have to pick up the twins from kindergarten. Ron, your parents are going to be late so you can stay for supper. Take advantage of it because Kimmie is grounded for two weeks and you won't be allowed to see her for that time.

"Aw man that tanks, Rufus is gonna be so bored," exclaimed the disappointed boy.

As they walked from the school office down the hall and out the front door, Kim felt the pressure of dozens of eyes staring at her as she made her way, and it made her skin crawl. Then she saw Bonnie standing in her classic bitch pose with a smug look on her face.

"Hi, K," taunted the brunette, "The save the world thing not working so good for you today?"

Kim could only growl quietly since her mom was right there.

It was not all bad however; she noticed the occasional smile of encouragement, a few thumbs up and, to her shock, a high five from Walter Nelson, the top jock of the school.

Kim did not notice Bonnie's smug smile change to a scowl.

"Ron, everyone is staring at me and it's creeping me out," whispered the redhead anxiously.

"Whew," replied the blond, "Yeah, I noticed it too, but I thought I'd lost my pants again."

Kim rolled her eyes wearily.

Out front the young girl noticed several groups of students uncharacteristically milling about. Usually the front lawn of the school was nearly deserted this long after last bell. They were looking at her as she left the school. Tara, Jessica, and Amanda came up to Kim.

"Mrs. Possible," started Tara, "I suppose Kim is suspended and grounded and all that so can we talk to her for a minute before you go home?"

"Sure Tara, Kim don't be long, I'll be in the car," said Anne as she dragged Jim and Tim along as they taunted, "Kim got busted, Kim got busted…."

"So, hero girl, spill," the trio of friends asked of the redhead.

"I'm suspended for a week and then detention for at least a month after that," replied the redhead morosely, "And my mom's grounded me for the next two weeks."

"That's so lame," exclaimed Amanda, "Between the three of us we think we got most of the kids in schoolyard to hand in notes saying what happened. So what did those guys get?"

"Barkin got the notes guys, I watched them get delivered," said Kim, "Honestly, even Barkin said that they kept me from getting expelled altogether. Thanks, I really appreciate the assist. They're suspended for two weeks, detention for three more and they have to stay inside during lunch and recess for the rest of the year."

"What about the cop?" asked Tara.

"Nothin'," answered the celebrity, "He just looked at me when he walked out."

Jessica spoke up, "I don't know what this means, but the fifth-graders are getting together for a 'royal court' on Monday and the topic of discussion is you."

"Wow KP," replied an excited Ron, "I don't know what that means either, but after today I bet it's gotta be good!"

"Ron, cut it out will you?" implored Kim, "Guys, thanks a lot but I'm wiped and suffering from major brain pain, I'll see you in a couple of weeks."

With that the two best friends proceeded to Anne's car and got in. Ron sat in the back seat with the twins while Kim sat up front with her mom. Other than the conversation between the blond and Jim and Tim the ride home was quiet and uneventful, neither redhead was in the mood for talk. Supper time was subdued, even the twins felt the tension around the table and Ron kept most of his comments to himself for a change. Kim barely ate and kept glancing at her parents who were studiously avoiding her gaze.

After supper Anne said to the kids, "Your father and I need to talk so you may go to the rec room till bedtime."

Ron sat on the couch and watched Kim growl at the twins as she claimed the remote. Releasing her ponytails, the weary girl shook her hair so that it hung loose between her shoulder blades then lay down on the couch, using Ron's lap as a pillow. The blond began stroking his best friend's hair, knowing she found it soothing.

The little redhead tuned the TV to a news channel much to the disappointment of the twins. Her best friend guessed what she was looking for, news of Team Go and her favourite hero, Shego, the mysterious female member who dressed in green and black, and shot green energy blasts from her hands. Unfortunately, there was nothing about them that day so Kim relinquished the remote to her brothers.

"You're right hun," commented James, "The way Barkin explains it the circumstances were extenuating, it's in Kimmie-cub's nature to want to help. She's also headstrong, free-spirited and impetuous which obviously can lead to some exciting solutions on her part. However, she still had the opportunity to approach a teacher for help and since I don't approve of using violence I find Mr. Barkin's approach tough but fair. Great-aunt Mim's legacy notwithstanding I'm glad she's basically a good kid, the thought of dealing with an evil Kim is frightening."

Anne added, "Steve told me Kimmie's stayed out of fights since after Christmas, this is the only incident since then. And her grades will be an A average by the end of the year compared to the B minus at first semester. He also made it sound like she's the school's track star and yesterday her sensei mentioned Kimmie is taking her kung fu lessons very seriously."

The rocket scientist pondered for a moment then raised his finger as he made an observation, "You know, now that you mention it hun, as ten year olds go, Kimmie has developed a rather strange habit since Christmas of watching the news on TV every evening and she seems rather focused on that Team Go; y'know, those hero types in the circus costumes. She seems to obsess on the woman Shego, perhaps as a role model."

"Maybe we should call her and see if she'll baby-sit for us tomorrow night," responded the surgeon sarcastically, "We still don't have anybody yet."

"Never mind Saturday night, what about next week when Kimmiecub is on suspension," pointed out James.

Although Kim was enjoying her quality time with Ron, she sighed in weary disappointment; he would be away from her for two weeks and Shego had not been on the news for a while….

"_Why is it when Shego clobbers the bad guys she gets a pat on the back and I get suspended…she's so smart, I can tell by how she talks to the news guys…bet she was a straight A student in school…her kitchen appliances probably don't hate her either so she can probably cook too…her kung fu is slammin'…I've got to ask Sensei if he can teach me that style…even with the mask I can tell she's way pretty…too bad I can't see her eyes, I wonder what colour they are…I'll bet they're an icy blue to go with that ivory skin…is that a green tinge on her cheeks…nd then there's that black hair that goes all the way down to her butt._

"Ron, do you think it would look nice if I grew my hair long like Shego's?" asked the contemplative girl.

"Sure KP," replied her best friend, "It's already almost halfway down your back anyway. Besides, we'll be in middle school next year, twin ponytails seems a little kiddish. You have the prettiest hair in the school, set it free Kim, if you have to tie it back, a single ponytail is enough."

Kim sat up and stared at her perplexing friend, "And you became a hair consultant, when?"

The blond sat up, raised a finger and proudly orated, "After long and careful consideration, Rufus and I came to the conclusion that this assessment of your hairstyle, as determined by a panel of experts, was the most valid."

Kim smirked and cocked an eyebrow at her friend, "You are so weird. And these experts are…?"

"Me and Rufus heard Tara, Amanda and Jessica talking the other day," Ron replied with a sheepish grin, "But I really think they're right."

Just then the doorbell rang and Anne yelled out, "Kimmie will you get the door; it's probably Ron's parents."

The little redhead ran and opened the front door, only to be surprised by whom she saw standing there, "You're not Ron's mom," she said wide-eyed.

"Ya think? I'm looking for Dr. James Possible," said the attractive young woman at the door.

Still caught off guard Kim yelled, "DAD, THERE'S A PRETTY YOUNG WOMAN HERE TO SEE YOU!"

"Oh yeah, smooth intro there Cupcake," said the visitor with a smirk.

**Disclaimer: **_Kim Possible belongs to Disney, only the story is mine, I'm just doing this for fits and giggles.  
This story was inspired by _"ASiT**" **"Stop Team Go" _and__ the last scene in_ "The Twin Factor."_  
Special thanks to Love Robin for her invaluable beta reading._


	2. Shego Takedown

**Alone in the Darkness  
**_**  
**_Chapter Two

…of Hope

* * *

"My name's Walter, Walter Nelson."

"Are you from around here?" asked Shego.

"Well, my mother's side of the family is named Keller. They moved to Montana from Switzerland. My mom married a Nelson and they moved to Middleton where I was born. When I finished middle school we moved to Go City. I lost my parents during the alien attack, so I moved to the old homestead in Montana to stay with my grandparents."

Walter continued, "I'd just graduated highschool and looking forward to attending Middleton Institute of Science and Technology in the fall. Of course, the alien attack and the ensuing 'Big Reality Check' put a hold on that idea so I volunteered to be a paramedic to help with all the sick people during the ensuing 'Starvathon' those first couple of years. When things settled down somewhat I became a sort of roving doctor, moving around on horseback the past five or six years to help folk in the Montana back country. All in all I'm what's left alive in my whole family. Anyway, I ran into this rancher who's the uncle of a girl I used to know and he told me that the Middleton Space Centre is ready to launch rockets again and they're looking for anybody with the qualifications or at least the aptitude to build payloads. So I put my name in and I moved into my older brother Ricky's house here in Lowerton for the time being. If I'm accepted they'll move me into a place in Middleton close to the Centre."

With a heavy sigh he looks at his guest, "I guess it goes without saying you don't remember your family or your home."

Shego merely cast her eyes down and nodded mutely.

"Hey, don't get too down about it. I think I know some people who might be able to find out for you one way or another; I'd be glad to help out any way I can." Walter said with encouragement.

"You would?"

"Of course, how could I refuse to help such a charming woman?"

Reaching across the kitchen table she places her hand atop his, "You're…you're the nicest man I've ever met."

Walter smiles and shrugs casually, "Aww, it's no big, but thanks."

Contemplating for a moment she continues, averting her eyes in embarrassment, "Actually, you're the only nice person I remember ever running into at all lately."

"Heh, way to validate the compliment," he responds with a wry smirk.

Suddenly realizing she may have insulted her benefactor, Shego attempts to apologize however a very unsubtle yawn suddenly interrupts; embarrassed she clamps her hands over her mouth, "Wow, I guess it's time to hit the sack, if you don't mind."

"Not at all." Escorting his guest to the stairs he adds, "Second door on the left. Good night Katie, I'll see you in the morning."

Clutching her old clothes in one hand and the hockey jersey to her chest Shego walks up a few steps then turning around gazes with sleepy eyes at her host, noting the unassuming young man giving her a small smile of encouragement accented by friendly, blue eyes and the hands waving to shoo her up the stairs to bed, "_He's so beautiful." _Stifling a small yawn she resumes her trip to bed.

Upon entering the room a sleepy Shego instinctively examines the room's security; a behaviour which to her seems prudent on an inexplicably persistent, compelling and inherently physical level. The incessant state of hyper-alertness, so far a constant feature of her existence, felt familiar; since it felt familiar it must be something she had done before…a lot…and in a way it was a memory of sorts and that comforted her.

Noting the door had no lock she spies and collects a plastic comb that she jams between the top of the door and the doorframe upon which she balances a small bowl with some coins; opening the door would now make noise. Shego drags a large heavy rucksack from the end of the bed to lie in front of the door to slow its opening; Shego now had a little extra reaction time if someone tried to enter through the door. The window could be secured; however, before drawing the curtains closed she gazes briefly out to a dark and apparently quiet backyard, noting points of concealment and escape routes. Glancing around to what she could see of the neighbourhood she is awestruck; whereas the street at the front, despite the multitude of boarded up houses and overgrown yards, seemed relatively normal, the rear was the opposite. Even in the darkness, all she could see for several square blocks was a veritable scrap yard of disabled alien battlewalkers…"_what did they call themselves"…_collapsed on the ground, each thoroughly wrapped in a tangle of Drakkenweed. Over to her far right she could just make out a crane and some trucks huddled around one of the alien machines.

Quickly scanning the bedroom she takes in the double bed with a cosy-looking quilt on it, a night table, and a highboy dresser with some sundry items. However, what captured her attention for several minutes was a dog-eared five by seven photo of a pretty twelve or thirteen year old girl with red hair and big green eyes atop the dresser. For several minutes Shego felt drawn to it and had a difficult time tearing herself away from it. A full length mirror standing next to the dresser, an acoustic guitar beside it and an open closet completed her inventory of the bedroom.

Investigating the closet the curious guest discovers that although all the clothing appears to be male, most of them had been pushed to one side with only a few items hanging by themselves in the middle of the closet. Of great interest was a blue jumpsuit with several pockets on it; although sturdy looking it had obviously seen some serious use, there being several repairs evident. On the shoulders were insignia patches reading 'Big Sky Search and Rescue - Emergency Medical Technician' under each was a small banner reading 'Volunteer' and the breast of the outfit sporting a black nametag with Nelson stitched in faded gold. Beside that was an equipment harness. On the floor of the closet was a sturdy pair of hiking boots that had seen hard use. Beside the boots was a sleeping bag, pup tent, climbing gear and rope, with the rucksack out by the door obviously part of the set.

Yawning again Shego moves to drop herself on the bed then stops. She thinks about how she had had to sleep in her form fitting outfit since she had nothing else to wear; it certainly had not been designed to keep her warm. Now she stopped and stared at the bed which promised comfort she could not recall experiencing in her short memory. Remembering the jersey in her hands she brings it up to her face and inhales deeply, absent-mindedly tossing the still damp green and black outfit into a corner; the jersey had Walter's scent to it which she found comforting. After staring at the door for several minutes she decides to succumb to temptation and trust. Hurriedly stripping her self naked to don the jersey as a nightshirt Shego dives into the inviting bed, falling asleep barely moments after drawing the quilt to her chin.

* * *

After making sure Katie made it up the stairs safely and deciding the dishes could wait till the morning Walter secures the house. Upon hearing the late evening warning siren in the distance he turns off the main breaker on the electrical panel; a few minutes later a second sounding presaged the powering down of Lowerton's electricity grid, plunging the town in darkness except for the streetlights. One by one he could make out the deep rumble of the locomotives in the marshalling yard on the other side of town cease as the engines were shut down from generating electricity for Lowerton to receive their nightly maintenance. Proceeding to the front hall closet he retrieves an old army Garand sniper rifle with its original scope and a .45 calibre semi-automatic pistol from its holster hanging from the cross bar.

He remembered a few winters before, while on his way to a small trading post, stumbling across the frozen body of a trapper who had apparently fallen down a steep gulch. It appeared the man had attached a note to his parka …

…_~"I Jeremiah Johnson, being of sound mind and two broken legs do bequeath to whomever finds my dead body, my Garand sniper rifle, it's real good for hunting with, and a .45 pistol, along with all the ammo and whatever supplies are intact. If you can bury me it would be appreciated but not necessary since I'll probably be eaten by then."~…._

Next to the holster hung a rescue dog's harness. He had had a female Golden Lab from the time she was a pup. Kimmie was her name, his four-legged sidekick for four years; he sadly remembered her death by a rock avalanche in the back country two years before. Loading both weapons and engaging their safeties he places them on the floor beside the couch. Making up the couch for sleeping Walter kicks off his boots as he makes himself comfortable for the night holding the pistol in his hand under the coverlet. As he relaxed Walter ruminated on the evening's events….

"_She seems to be suffering from amnesia probably from whatever caused that nasty scar to her scalp…anterograde symptoms very evident during supper which tends to validate the apparent retrograde amnesia…transient global amnesia not likely anymore but gotta watch for it…oh man, and then there's the mood swings to expect …still, she seems accustomed to pain…even tired she moves with graceful strength and…wow… those intensely green eyes seem to have some exotic look to them…maybe a little Asian influence…perhaps Latina…obviously older than me but not much more than early thirties…but there's something about who she is, something important that rings a bell…damn, damn, damn, I wish I could remember what that was...it's like it's just on the edge of my mind…"_ Walter pinched the bridge of his nose, "_…and I bet I'll feel like a moron when I figure it out."_

As he slowly drifts off to sleep, a final thought crosses his mind, _"Haven't had anyone for near on seven years…gets lonely at times…hell, who am I kidding, it gets lonely a lot…never could find a girl who matched Kim…this woman's so beautiful…wonder what she's like outside the amnesia…would I like her…would she like me…heh, wouldn't it be something if I end up falling for an older woman…or did I already?"  
_

* * *

The pre-dawn light showing through the curtains woke Shego up; as was her custom she lay still with her eyes closed, feigning sleep as her other senses took stock of her surroundings. Satisfied there was no immediate threat she appraised her physical condition, or counting bones as she liked to put it. Despite a solid and peaceful sleep her body still aches from a pernicious fatigue that plagues her constantly; it would take a little while before she could move without too much pain. Her headache was mild this morning, her hands did not pulse in agony as they were wont to do all too frequently and her skin did not feel as if it were on fire. The stitched up gash to her side throbbed only slightly and most encouraging of all was that she remembered the entire previous day's events, especially the actions of a very kind young man, "_Wow, that makes eight days straight…I think…."_

Allowing herself to relax, Shego revels in the pleasant feeling of lying under a warm, thick, quilt. After all she went through the night before it was nice to wake up in a soft bed within a quiet room instead of outside somewhere in the wild or in a drafty abandoned building. Still she knew she would have to leave all of this soon, that it was her first and last night in this house, ever.

Even as every square inch of her body aches, she slowly gets up, hissing in pain and annoyance; doffing her night shirt Shego stretches naked in the middle of the room, being mindful of the fresh stitches in her side. Discovering the bedroom light would not work she decides to open the window curtains, still too sleepy to worry about peeping toms and, after all, the sun was not even quite up yet. Grabbing a hairbrush from the top of the dresser she is again drawn to the photo of the young girl. Curious, Shego turns the photo around to find a note written there,

_...~"Summer 2001. To the best boyfriend in the world. Best of luck in Go City. I'll never forget you. Live well. Maybe we'll meet again someday and carry out our promise to each other. All my love. Kimmie."~..._

It is several minutes before Shego manages to pull herself away from staring at the photo and walks to the full-length mirror, examining her self as she begins brushing out her long tresses. Besides the few scratches and the gash to her side from the night before, _"He did a good job stitching, I might not get a scar out of that one," _there was the collection of scars from obvious knife and bullet wounds. All of them save last night's injury and one other, she could not remember how they had been inflicted and, to her dismay, even her face sported a small assortment of very faint scars.

Examining her self closely in the full length mirror for the first time since she could remember Shego disparaged at her appearance, _"I've got such a wide ass and my thighs are so fat…and my boobs hang down like big dead water balloons…and my eyebrows look like big fuzzy caterpillars…my skin goes from pasty white in the light to glowing green in the dark…my hair is green, my lips and nipples are green, my privates are green and a teenage girl probably has more pubic hair than I do…I __**am**__ a fucking mutant!"_

Shego then remembers something from after supper, something pleasant that sends warm, fuzzy feelings through her insides. Looking at herself coyly in the mirror she wraps her arms around herself, pushing her breasts together, enhancing their cleavage, _"Walter thinks I'm pretty…and he's so the total macho hotness and a complete sweetie…does he think I'm girlfriend material?" _she smiled brightly at the thought, _"…that would be so perfect…" _then just as quickly her mood sobered, _"…but I don't deserve him."_

Moving to her clothing Shego first picks up the green pouch she had been wearing on her ankle; she was not sure of its significance, however she felt keeping it to be very important. Opening it she examines the contents: some were recognizable; black lip stain and nail polish; three extraordinarily stout nail files; a handful of condoms and some money. The curious items were two key rings each with a strange assortment of small, well-worn tools obviously meant for some form of delicate and precise work. There was a small collection of plastic and metal cards each sporting curious patterns of embossing and punch-holes. Lastly was a small blood-encrusted survival knife, and to her consternation, a few pieces of beef jerky, _"Those weren't there yesterday morning!"_

Shego remembered, with a shudder, her oldest memory to date; she had awakened one morning in pain from that knife sticking in her right side just under the ribs. Glancing down she could still see the now fading scar, "_Why am I not surprised this has healed so quick?" _The weapon had still been in the grip of the dead man lying in front of her, his throat ripped out, realizing a few moments later the missing portion of his throat firmly grasped in her blood-covered left hand. Then she pondered the dried meat, "_I don't remember when I got this…oh god, did I actually steal from that butcher shop…was that man justified in chasing me…I don't even remember being in there, I only remember being chased." _In her mind, Shego grimly concluded, "_I __**am**__ a worthless, thieving migrant."_

Then suddenly, she starts thinking about her benefactor and his proposition. He was a genuinely nice guy. When one is as beautiful as Shego is, genuine kindness is rare since most of the time a guy just wants to get between her legs. And he saved her life_, "No. I just can't take him up on his offer to stay...he's such a great guy…I mean, what if I get my memory back and it turns out that deep down I'm some cranky smart-mouth, prone to excessive violence…I'd be betraying his kindness and that wouldn't be fair to him…I'll just head back out on the street like I said I would…anyway, I'm not worthy of being loved_…_not by him."_ Slowly Shego turns away from the mirror and sits on the bed, despair building as tears stream down her pallid face. She did not want it to happen, _"Oh please, don't let him start crushing on me!"_

_"Yes; he fed me, he dressed me, he let me take a bath and even spend the night in his own house…he saved my life…he didn't ask for money or any other settlement...he's not creepy…I feel safe around him." _ Shego's eyes wander to the closet to rest upon the medic's uniform hanging there and a realization hit her, _"You fucking drama queen, of course he'd help you, it's his job…you're no one special, you're just another patient to him!" _

Shego lay back down on the bed, covering her naked body with the quilt. Depression overwhelming her she begins sobbing uncontrollably, shivering both because of her sadness and the early morning chill in the house. A little over an hour later the distraught woman's sobs begin to subside; drawing the back of her hand across her nose she is shocked to see it covered in blood, _"Oh my god, a nosebleed! I've got another headache coming. If I don't get outta here he'll insist on my staying to care for me._ _I need to hurry!"_

She dresses quickly in the new clothes that Walter had given her. Her old ones were so ragged that they could barely be called threads anymore and the strange green and black pattern was too distinctive in any case, although the boots were still serviceable. Shego is pleased to see the ankle pouch fit neatly under her pant leg. Checking to see if the hallway was empty and deeming it safe, she carefully pads down the stairs, clenching her jaw at every step. She was getting worried, shooting pains were affecting the flexibility in her joints and the headache was becoming distracting. Upon entering the living room, it seemed as though a haze was dropping over her vision as the headache worsened. Barely able to see Shego was incredulous to discover Walter had slept on the couch, _"He even gave me his own bedroom…he let me sleep in a warm bed while he slept on the couch, with only a coverlet…he trusted me not to rob, or even murder him."_

Shego had barely made it to the door when her body felt as if it had been skewered by a lightning bolt of pain, eliciting a short, piercing shriek that startled Walter rudely awake in time to see his guest collapse unconscious to the floor.

"Katie!" Dashing to her side Walter is aghast to see the serious nosebleed, however he is relieved to see her panting, indicating she was breathing freely on her own.

With barely a thought and pretty well working on instinct, he presses three fingers against a carotid artery to gauge her pulse. A moment later he yelps, withdrawing his now painful fingers. Upon examination he is amazed to see first degree burns on his fingertips; carefully passing his other hand over Shego's body he is astonished to discover her skin to be as hot as an iron.

* * *

Wearing surgical scrubs with the facemask hanging down around her neck, the tall, slim woman enters a private hospital room at the start of her rounds. Although technically a neurosurgeon much of her service over the past seven years had focused more on general practice including the treatment of malnutrition, disease control and more recently and disturbingly, radiation sickness from fallout; in any case however her expertise in treating head trauma was exercised often enough. Dr. Anne Possible was now in charge of Middleton Medical Centre; however, the scarcity of trained medical personnel meant she spent more time on the floor than the office.

Anne had always had a slim figure; however the privations over the past few years had made their mark. Although still only in her early fifties, her figure was not so much willowy any more as gaunt, her cheeks a little sunken and although the blue eyes still held a bit of a twinkle the bags under her eyes and the pronounced crows-feet around them were testimony to the horrors they had witnessed. The trademark red hair was being replaced by dull, brown tresses with the odd white strand beginning to make their appearance.

She had barely picked up the patient's chart when she heard Tara's chipper voice down the hall, "Morning daddy Possible, any word from Kim and Ron?"

"Good morning my dear. Kimberly just called a little while ago; she and Ron are fine and send their love," Anne subsequently heard heard her husband say, then smiled at him as he walked into the room,

"Hello dear, how are things today?"

James' physical appearance mirrored that of his wife's except his hair was a solid mass of grey and sported a trim grey beard. With a bit of a lopsided smile he responds, "Hi hun. Oh, pretty good. So how's Drew?"

Anne answered with a note of optimism, "Well, remember how we couldn't get an x-ray to give us an image of his head injury; we still don't know why since it works on other patients; and decided to just fix him up old school? Well, once he was stable his vines started growing and wrapped themselves around him. It was Tara," Anne smiled broadly, "she's my new head nurse by the way,…"

"…Good for her…" James responded cheerfully.

"…who suggested recently moving Drew closer to the window to give his flowers more daylight along with a trice daily sponge bath. Well that did the trick and he's progressed better in the last week than I could ever have expected considering his injuries and how much radiation he took which, by the way, we have no idea how he survived that. Anyway look here around his neck, he's growing yellow petals; they're small but I'm taking that as a good thing."

"Outstanding! Oh, and Kimmie-cub just called about an hour ago from Denver. She says her and Ronald will be there a few more days guarding the Pan-Dimensional Vortex Inducer while the scientists are setting it up to kick-start the new cold fusion reactor. Anyway she asked about Drew and if there was any word of Shego."

At that point the conversation was interrupted by Sheriff Hobble's rather inelegant entrance to the room, his feet tripping him into the door as his attention seemed drawn down the hall, "Top of the morning to ya Anne, James," the large law enforcement officer greeted somewhat distractedly in his trademark Irish brogue.

"Good morning Sean," Anne giggled, "You're not ogling my new head nurse now; are you?"

"I assure you ma'am that I don't ogle on duty. However, that is not to say I can't notice how one of your nurses seems to deport herself in the most angelic demeanour imaginable and, in any case, I'm sure any inappropriate behaviour on my part would result in Kimberly inflicting twenty kinds of hurt just on one hand alone."

The sheriff continued on with more focus, "I brought ya some news I figured you'd be interested in. First off, a ranger patrol reports the fallout zone from that nuke that took out Lipsky's lair has shifted and caught a number of homesteaders off guard. I expect there'll be a bunch of people with radiation sickness showin' up on your doorstep within a few days. The other one'll probably interest you more since ya been worryin' about her; there was a positive sighting of Shego in Lowerton last night."

* * *

**AN:**_ Anterograde amnesia: _Short term memory loss. Information does not get passed on to the long term memory. Events of any duration can be completely forgotten almost immediately after they occur. The same question can be asked repeatedly because the question and subsequent answer had already been forgotten. Or, extended periods of time can be forgotten resulting in confusion when a 'couple of hours' appear to have been 'lost'.

_Retrograde amnesia:_ Long term memory loss often stemming from a traumatic head injury. Often starting from just before the injury occurred, it can extend the entire lifetime of the victim. Events learned through physical repetition: walking, running, swimming, dialling a phone, riding a bike, and driving a car are remembered. Abstract knowledge is suppressed: names, faces, dates and events. For example, the sensation of walking through the surf at a beach would be remembered however the memory of any particular visit to any beach would not. Speech and language skills can be affected but will improve with use. Recovery usually begins with the oldest memories first and proceeding to the more recent ones. Kim's memory recall in "Clean Slate" appears to follow this pattern.

_Transient global amnesia: _A combination of the two symptoms above however for only a temporary period.

* * *

_The Kim Possible characters in this story were created by Bob Schooley and Mark McCorkle; _©_Disney. OC's belong to me or Storm Schutze._

_~~I don't write for adoration; care I not for remuneration…I just write for inspiration.~~_


	3. Payback, Kimstyle

**Can I Be Your Sidekick?**

**Chapter 3**

**Disclaimer: **_Kim Possible belongs to Disney, only the story is mine, I'm just doing this for fits and giggles._

_This story was inspired by the last scene in_ "The Twin Factor.", "ASiT", "Stop Team Go"_._

_My thanks also to all those readers who left a review._

* * *

**Journal**

_Sent the Stoppables to Norway before the buffoon was born. Kimmie hooks up with Walter Nelson and by high school are attached at the hip. Her hero career is cut short barely before it began; who would've thought Miss Priss would get knocked up at fourteen by Walter just before he moves to Go City. This was just too precious, I must've laughed myself hoarse, and by the end of the week my sides still hurt. No time to be a teen hero when you're going to high school and raising a kid. Turns out the baby looked like a clone of grandma._

_Wouldn't you know it, Princess still lands on her feet. Seems she meets a certain goofy blond student whose parents moved back to Middleton from Norway. They fell in love in junior year and got married a few years later. Egad, that was so sappy I thought I was gonna puke! Well, overall it didn't matter in the grand scheme of things; no teen hero meant there was no Resistance._

_Aliens, no one said anything about aliens. A ship arrived, they called themselves Lowardians; the occupants claimed we attacked them with a missile. They were probably referring to one of the space probes I sent out. No sense of humour; they were huge, green and tough to beat even with my plasma. They took us out in less than three days._

_As much as I hate to say it, I sure could've used Miss Priss' save the world skills this time. I bailed with the Time Monkey._

_How interesting, even with her out of the picture I still lost in the end._

_Possible 3, World Domination 0_

* * *

A feral grin graced Shego's visage, battle lust gleaming in jade eyes; pointing her arm she gestured a three finger taunt to the last of four opponents who was twirling a quarterstaff in front of himself…_ loser's billy, he should'a brought a piece, no fun now…_she uttered an evil snicker_…spud's got no composure, can't peg my style, heh, doesn't know what do with the woody in his hands…oh wait, now he wants to play…_the mercenary sneered_…laaame, the 'Winter Staff Around Summer Blossom' attack, puh-leeze…_she deftly parried each thrust and sweep of the staff, the routine so predictable she could call each shot_…left high, uppercut, left low, again, jab, overhead, should'a brought a book, wish I were fightin' Princess…ok, bored now._

With a speed and strength that took the young man by surprise, Shego snatched the staff out of his hands. Targeting her opponent's head, she swung to within inches of it merely to drop the weapon to the floor. Totally unprepared for such an unconventional manoeuvre the other fighter was for all intents and purposes caught flat footed when the green-eyed woman connected a round-house kick to the head. Before he could collapse the green-eyed fighter's followed up with a circle kick sending her opponent flying over twenty feet across the mat to bowl over several students sitting along the edge.

"Hold."

With a snarl Shego whipped her head toward the voice that dared command her; she recognized Master Po and forced herself to calm down. The raven-haired woman remembered wryly when she was younger the time she pissed off a kung fu master who appeared to be aged between fifty and three hundred years old. He made her taste her spleen quite literally; it took almost two months of bed rest for her body to regenerate a new oneand heal her damaged pancreas. She turned and bowed respectfully_…besides this is Kimmie's dojo._

Master Po returned the bow politely then looking at a beaming Kim announced, "Would her Crimson Brilliance present herself along with her guest."

As the green-eyed duo did so Jhessa cocked an eyebrow at her young partner and whispered, "Crimson Brilliance?"

"It's supposed to be my new honour name, but his granddaughter says it's just his way of calling me 'Red'," then with a knowing look and a smirk added a cryptic, "Wait for it."

In a rich baritone voice Master Po continued, "I am honoured to announce the full mastery of the Mantis Style by Kim Possible, the youngest student to do so; please to let us congratulate her accomplishment."

The little redhead glowed with pride as she saw her family and Ron applaud enthusiastically, her father recording everything on their video cam.

Master Po signalled for the audience's attention, "I wish to acknowledge the exemplary skill demonstrated by our guest, her 'Emerald Radiance', whose skill in the martial arts was an inspiration."

As everybody applauded Jhessa's eyes opened wide, eyebrows disappearing beneath bangs; looking at her young companion she uttered, "Say what?"

Grinning, Kim explained, "Told ya, he just gave you an honour name too, I'm not sure but I think he just called you 'Green Babe'."

"Did not…"

"…Did so…"

"…I'm not green…"

"…You have green eyes, your hair shines green and all the older boys have been calling you a babe since we got here…"

"…I'm not that green and I'm not a ba…yeah, ok I'm a babe."

Kim ran off with an amused glint in her olive eyes, "I'll be right back, Jhessa," approaching her instructor she bowed, "Master Po, have you had a chance to consider my request to learn Shego's fighting style?"

"Yes, Crimson Brilliance. Hers is not a style so much as a philosophy called 'The Intercepting Fist'. Although I am acquainted with it I do not adhere to its tenets," looking towards Shego he added, "However, her Emerald Radiance might be willing to instruct you; she seems to comprehend that philosophy as no other."

The young girl looked with curiosity at her babysitter.

In a back corner of the dojo, unobtrusively hiding in plain site an old man of Asian descent wearing a red and gold silk robe and sporting a generous moustache, beard and top knot of white hair attended the demonstration with interest. His eyes glinted with satisfaction at Kim's accomplishment then glanced at Shego_…Emerald Radiance sounds so much nicer than Shego…I wonder how your spleen is doing these days._

* * *

The young teen girl crept stealthily making her way to the vault door at the end of the corridor, eyes enhanced with night vision goggles she easily avoided the simple laser beam alarm triggers. Shucking her backpack she retrieves a round electronic device with a small display screen and number keypad and affixed it to the vault door. She hoped her Intel was correct; the security breaching protocols of the device could only be matched up to one system at a time. With a satisfied smile she watched the electronic device successfully unlock the vault and stepped back as the door swung open.

Stepping inside she saw more laser beams; however, knowing they only supplemented the pressure sensitive floor extending in a ten foot radius around a pedestal in the middle of the vault upon which sat the item she was to retrieve for her mentor.

Reaching into her pack again she pulled out a cylindrical device with a round disc affixed to each end. Stretching as high as she could the young girl placed one end of the device against the wall and heard the disc clack magnetically against it. Activating a trigger launched a grapple line across the room its magnetic disc securing itself on the other side. Placing a pulley on the cable she deftly lifted herself up to hook the karabiner to her web belt pulling herself along till she was just above her objective. Reaching down with a clawed gauntlet she plucked a thin wafer of gold engraved with mystical writings from its place; displaying it proudly towards the security camera she removed her goggles to reveal a smug expression.

Putting the video on pause, Shego, still wearing work out clothes from her morning exercises, leaned back in her executive office chair and turned her head towards her uncle sitting to the side, "A real showboat isn't she?"

Still scribbling down notes he says, "She does display a rather irrepressible sense of self confidence."

The sable-haired woman added, "If she didn't pull in six figures every time I hired her out I'd be more inclined to smack that smug look off the little spud's face. What about the biometric readings from her chip?"

Percy consulted his laptop sitting atop his niece's oak desk, "The genetic manipulations to her body are holding up well, she's already as strong as a young adult male and by the time she's fifteen as strong as an Olympic weightlifter. Her agility matches that of a gymnast but of course she needs to be taught how to use her strength and agility to best effect. Which brings up her intellect; she's bright but not brilliant, has a knack for deception, which shows in the adeptness with which she picks up your lessons on stealth and infiltration. And, as seems true with kids her age, is fairly competent using electronic equipment. Basically, she can be taught. The apparent success rate she enjoys seems to validate her ability to learn and apply skills to her missions. However, I have noted she doesn't seem to think so fast on her feet and her fear of extreme heights could become a problem on certain missions. Anyway Jhessa, I should get going and work some more on the neural scans I took of you.

Shego drinks from a water bottle as she puts her shapely, athletic legs up on her desk, watching her uncle leave, "Thanks unc' I appreciate it." On her computer she brings up a file with her training log and enters some data…_pretty good, not as strong as Hego but I can at least throw Mego across the room next time he gets annoying._

After updating her training log the young woman walks to the mini bar and stares blankly at the row of fine liquors lined up on a shelf. Grabbing some energy bars and pineapple juice from the bar fridge she turns to glance around the executive penthouse office of her 'corporate' headquarters; the penthouse, completely surrounded by windows, gave her an unobstructed view of the Tri-City area from her newly acquired office building situated in Upperton. In the middle of the floor was a circular staircase that connected with the receptionist one floor below where the elevator was. Opposite the mini bar was a large aquarium containing several piranha, on the ceiling were two self-activating motion-sensing lasers disguised as lamps. The penthouse was subdivided to include a small conference room and an en suite bedroom.

Munching on her snack Shego returns to her desk to check her agenda, stopping briefly along the way to admire some blue hydrangeas on a side table_…hmm, busy today…what should I wear? _Then a lopsided grin appears on her face_ …sweet, I think I'll stay in my workout clothes for this first appointment, he'll be too busy drooling to think clearly._

* * *

"Ok Mr. Smarty, GoCorp will start furnishing your stores with the new stock-bots over the next ten years, as part of the deal I'd like you to indulge me with a rather eccentric request," said Shego.

"Anything Miss Green, a generous investment such as you have made certainly entitles you to any indulgence," replied Martin Smarty eagerly, all the while barely able to keep his eyes away from the contours showing through Shego's outerwear sportsbra.

"It's no big, I like animals; I wouldn't hurt an alligator even if it tried to eat me…_where did _that _come from…,_something like piranhas, hermit crabs, buffalo, baby otters, lemurs and oh, especially naked mole rats and maybe an angry gorilla or two, for example; if it's not too much trouble," said the young woman in the sweetest voice she could muster_…ick, no shiv but I'm getting cavities some nasty, and he's undressed me so many times with his eyes I think I'm gonna catch cold._

The bald executive stood up and offered his hand, "It's a deal."

Shego stood up and shook his hand, "Have your legals call my legals and we'll do signatures."

As the Smartymart owner left the young executive reflected on this success…_yup, platoons of armoured, EMP resistant, laser armed battlebots scattered around the world._

* * *

"In short ma'am," concluded the Chief of Operations, "as of last month we have complete control of fourteen minor countries, significant influence in twenty-two more and a presence in all the rest. The suggestions planted by the programming of the neuro-compliance chips is even making the worst despots slowly change their domestic policies to benefit their citizens; corruption is slowly decreasing bit by bit but enough to be noticed by the western powers. Foreign aid is reaching our controlled countries allowing us to rebuild infrastructure at their expense. In the long run, the loyalty base will increase as the qualities of life for these populations improve."

Jade eyes turn to the Chief Financial Officer who begins her summary, "As usual ma'am your economic acumen is beyond anything I've ever seen…"

…_You have no idea sister…_

"…In ten years, assuming your input continues our liquid assets alone could eliminate the U.S. national debt. As instructed we've created a new international banking institution called GoBank, we now have a secure location to sequester all funds not immediately required for operations so they don't unduly influence the financial markets. As ordered the marketing people in the controlled countries are slowly insinuating the perception that overall prosperity is as much tied with 'GoCorp' as it is with the economic policies of that government."

Acknowledging the report with a nod, Shego turns her chair to gaze out the window, effectively dismissing the executives. After they left she started going through the computer files to check on the progress of a few certain projects.

_Hmm, Neutronalizer production is on track, they worked great against the aliens, at least until the power grid was disabled. The new ones will be self-contained power-wise...weather machine production, good…Pan-Dimensional-Vortex Inducer acquisition awaiting it's creation by original owner…the first cold-fusion reactor program on track…my citadel needs a few more defensive turrets for Neutronalizer batteries…oh yeah, my favourite, Kimmie's new lair will be ready in five or six years._

Turning to her desk the young woman picked up a tabloid and a copy of 'Villain's Digest'. The tabloid, 'The Obsessed', had two articles indexed with sticky notes. The first article reported the appearance of short, pink aliens at various places around the world…_no wonder I've been itchy a lot these past couple weeks, the Rufus Series have been busy…_the second article warned of mind control chips controlling some of the world leaders making them behave out of character…_don't like this…_Shego pressed a switch, "Kasey, please send Agent Jones here now."

"Sure an' I'll be doin' that for you right now, Miss Jhessa," responded the receptionist with a lilting Irish brogue.

Shego holds up a lit finger, speaking with irritation to a man suddenly standing behind her, "Jonesy, if you insist on trying to sneak up on me I swear I'll turn your hair into a green flambé, got it? Next time use the stairs."

"Yes ma'am, you wanted to see me," said a male voice.

Pointing to the tabloid, "Follow up on the mind control chip story, eliminate everybody connected to it and follow the trail to its source, if it leads here find the traitor and advise me, I'll decide what to do at that point; understood?"

Nodding to his employer and picking up the tabloid, the black suited man left via the stairs.

With a huff the green-eyed woman retrieved a bottle of water from the bar then dropped back into her chair, rubbing her eyes…_oi, long day…_picking up the digest she skimmed the articles…_Team Impossible - Heroes, Villains or Mercenaries...Henchco is expanding operations…Want Ads…finally Drakken's want ad for a sidekick._

Glancing at the video image of the young girl Shego dials up the research head of the neuro-compliance chip division, "Doctor, your Mark III neuro-compliance chip appears to have eliminated the zombie-like deportment of the subject, and quite effectively it seems. And new behaviour mods can be programmed remotely with an encrypted signal…Good, it's time for our star pupil to deploy, re-configure her compliance chip to obey a villain named Drakken, I'll send his specs, but I want you to add some embellishments…Yes, make sure she displays a cynical attitude, short temper and plenty of sarcasm…Excellent…I'll let you know when to engage the changes, and expect a bonus this month for your division…Yeah, yeah, whatever…Now get back to work.

Turning to the video screen the young executive in charge of GoCorp_…your experts in world domination…_pressed play and watched movement return to the smug, young face, a mischievous glint in her eyes as she destroys the security camera with a blast of green energy from an adamantine clawed black gauntlet. She sighed…_you can imitate but you can't duplicate…_

* * *

"First of all Princess, we get rid of katas and all those fancy flourishes you sees on kung fu movies. Remember those first two guys I took out at your dojo, while they were going through their 'demonstrations' I had plenty of time to take each of them out; in a real fight that waste of time could get you hurt. Besides, doing a kata is like practicing how to swim on dry land, it's not of much use. If you want to be an effective fighter you must practice how to fight; as such we'll be sparring everyday and not by tournament rules either."

After supper a sore and tired Kiminserted a tape into the VCR to review some of the news footage of Shego fighting to see if she could study how the hero fought and apply it to her lessons.

* * *

**Late spring**

Ever since returning to the beginning of the time stream Shego had been aware of the little quirks in her behaviour; she attributed this to the fact that since she was reliving this portion of her life old habits were simply kicking in. The dreams were there but infrequent, now they were driving her to distraction.

Her memory was also proving difficult of late; things she thought had occurred recently were realized later to not have yet occurred. Sometimes she could not tell if a recent event was a new memory or an old one. Her uncle's partial explanation helped somewhat however he was having trouble interpreting the data from the neural scans he took some weeks ago. There was one thing Shego felt certain about….

"You've got something to do with this Possible!" shouted the frustrated young woman as she drove to the Possible home for an early afternoon meeting with Kim's mom_…I bet she's gonna peg me for my pheromonal dysfunction, figure that ain't gonna be too awkward._

Following her instructions Shego let herself in the front door and immediately heard noises coming from the family room_…that sounds like one of Ron's video games I thought the kids were still in school. _Upon entering however she was surprised to see Kim's mom sitting on the couch furiously punching buttons on the game controller. "Mrs. Dr. P?" said the incredulous teen.

With a surprised yelp Ann leapt up and spun around, blushing in embarrassment when she realized she was busted by the baby sitter. Grinning sheepishly she wiggled her fingers, stuttering, "Um, playing is good for hand eye coordination, useful for neurosurgeons, gotta stay frosty y'know. Sorry, I must've lost track of time, worked a night shift, just got up a little while ago, or so I thought. You won't tell Kimmie will you; she hates these things."

A stunned Shego managed to stammer, "Sure thing," as she took in her employer's appearance; tussled hair, braless under a loose t-shirt, worn out cut off jeans showing off long legs ending in dainty, pedicured feet_…hmm, not baad…gaaggh, composure, total lack of…_trying to refocus she glances at the game box.

"Zombie Mayhem, isn't that Ronnie's favourite game, so why are there snowmen on the screen?" the teen asked curiously.

With an enthusiastic glint in her eye the mother replies, "Bonus round after you beat the game. This is my fourth time through, the bonus round is my favourite. An evil Santa builds a weather machine to produce toxic snowstorms and create zombie snowmen. I've got the snow plough now and I've almost enough kills to get the ion powered snow melter before the snow giant shows up; oh and the power-ups are cups of hot cocoa."

"Yeaaah…ok," replied Shego, "_hmm, profiler must've missed that aptitude for video games…_um, what did you want to talk about Mrs. Dr. P?"

Suddenly adopting a sultry look and sashaying over to her target Ann lifts the chin of the shorter woman locking intense blue eyes onto confused jade ones then speaking softly into her ear, "Let's put ourselves on an even footing first shall we? I'll call you Jhessa if you call me Ann; if you insist on being formal I guess I'll have to return the courtesy and call you Miss…Shego."

Although the younger woman did well to conceal her reaction it was futile while in bodily contact with a perceptive brain surgeon mother with a psychology degree. _Gotchya, _thought the older woman to herself as she continued to whisper, "You seem to be a little stressed, allow me to make you more comfortable; would a strong cup of J200 help you relax? I know it works for me."

Turning off the video game and TV then proceeding to the kitchen with Shego in tow Ann continued her explanation, "When you showed up I was eighty per cent sure, I'd seen you on the news; there aren't that many women with three feet of luxurious raven tresses. Also there aren't many high school girls willing to drink coffee that's older than they are. I hired you on Percy's recommendation and I figured if you were a super hero you might be able to keep up with the kids."

After the coffee was served the hero-villain remained alertly silent as she watched the mother reach under the sink and retrieve a light green spray can from the cleaning caddy. Her eyes opened wide with recognition_…damn, where'd she find that?_

The redhead continued, "I confiscated this spray paint from the boys, I'm sure you can well imagine why. Also imagine my surprise when I discovered the paint smelled like skin lotion and the colour looked familiar. I took it to a chemist colleague who was mightily impressed; it's experimental, a camouflage paint that's permanent until removed with a counter-agent and is also beneficial to the skin."

_Figure like I'm gonna tear a new one in the profiler who dropped the ball on mom's resourcefulness, _thought Shego grimly.

The surgeon stood up and motioned the teen to do the same then began caressing her exposed skin, "…third degree contact burns upper right arm, skin's a little pink but nice work with the makeup...I'm next in line to be head neurosurgeon at Middleton Medical Centre so I needed to upgrade my experience. Because you were away on 'family' matters a few weeks ago, James took some time off while I worked at Go Memorial," Ann looked in awe at the left wrist, " The skin burned off to the bone and it's almost completely regenerated; is their any pain or tightness?" Seeing Shego shake her head she continued, "One night while I was on duty in ER I had a very illuminating and eventful emergency call. It seems Team Go had just captured some electrical villain but apparently Shego really took one for the team to complete the collar. She came in with severe electrical burns over most of her body, many of them third degree. Take off your top please."

As she complied Shego winced at the memory, _I am so gonna nuke that moronic, self centered spud Mego radical for that billy stunt. _

Ann continued her examination as she spoke, "Every emergency response is important but to say there was an elevated sense of urgency when you came in would be an understatement...arc burn entry wound here and exit here...I was thinking if Shego died on my watch Kimmie would be devastated. As I went for you I was stopped by Hego; he started ranting about civic responsibility, super hero secret identity and signing a non-disclosure agreement before I started treatment. I couldn't believe what I was hearing so I did what I always do to difficult people in ER, I took him out."

With disbelief on her face Shego asked, "Huh, what?"

Looking at her babysitter grimly Ann continued, "No one gets between me and my patient, absolutely no one. It took but a moment to realize Hego's weakness, a slavish obsession with following rules and procedures, I simply told him his interference with a physician's duties in a hospital was against hospital policy and if such interference caused further injury or death he would be held culpable...hmm, the third degree burns on your torso from your outfit catching fire are healing well...he was very cooperative when security hauled your brothers' sorry asses out of the treatment room. I was very surprised to suddenly see Percy there, I thought he was going to have a stroke when he saw me treating you. He practically begged me to hook up a brain monitor to you and said I'd be the only one able to interpret the readings. I figured it was a superhero thing and agreed. Imagine also my surprise when the nurse and I managed to peel off the burnt mask and found myself looking at my babysitter's burnt albeit green face…the flash burns there are all gone." Ann smiled, "You can put your top back on and sit down my dear. I'm a neurosurgeon not a trauma specialist, but there was a gang war between two high schools that night and ER was swamped, so of course I pitched in."

The raven-haired teen sat mesmerized as she watched Kim's mother take on the 'thousand-yard-stare' as she took a long pull from her mug; the surgeon continued, "You were a mess; you went into vfib while I was dealing with your brother and I had no idea what internal injuries you had from the arc burns. All I know is I resuscitated you seven times_…seventh time's the charm…_each attempt motivated by a curious brain wave on the monitor that shouldn't have been there and you calling out for Kim. So here you are barely two weeks out of the hospital with the scars almost completely healed; tell me you're not Shego."

The young woman thought back to that night; she did not recall much after she and Electronique began mixing it up when the ambush went bad thanks to Mego. It was no wonder her brothers had been scarce the past couple of weeks and her uncle circumspect about it all. The blurry memory of two blue orbs within a halo of red and four words repeated…_please, for Kimmie's sake..._finally made itself clear.

A sudden realization hit Jhessa's mind like a brick which then felt as if it dropped to her gut…_Damn, it wasn't me that fought Electronique in the original time stream, it was Jhessy. It was her turn to go on a mission with the boys, when she took the hit. What was it she told me about ER that night…"I heard a warm soothing voice calling me and saw two blue planets in a red nebula and knew I had to get there." _The young woman looked across the kitchen table to the older woman and she remembered, _The ER doctor who saved my sister was a Dr. Ann Possible…._

* * *

After the Nano-Tick caper, Shego was furious at having been foiled for the first time in her villainous career by a high school sophomore cheerleader…_who could deflect laser beams with a compact mirror. _It was time to pay Princess an overnight visit.

The green villain approached the Possible home from a nearby ravine to under the house pondering whether to enter via the patio door or the back door by the kitchen_…they probably have one of those chintzy suburban grade home alarm systems. _Sneaking between two bushes she felt a click beneath her foot… _please tell me that was a twig…_then felt a clamp around her ankle. The dilemma with her ankle was immediately forgotten when a loud pop signalled the launch of a small canister to level with the villain's face her eyes opening in horror at the realization she was staring at the business end of a 'Bouncing-Betty' anti-personnel mine…_**SHIT!**_ Shego closed her eyes as the click of the igniter switch and ensuing loud bang turned her world bright orange.

The mercenary was still in a foul mood several days after the other night's fiasco at the Possible home; her outfit was ruined after being doused with glow-stick orange paint mixed with some super stink formula from the paint grenade that launched in front of her. The bruises on her body were almost gone yet when one is struck by over a hundred pepper-spray filled paint balls some of those impacts overlap and it was those spots that still ached, along with the ankle. Her hair still stank and a couple of henchmen were still cleaning out the cockpit of the hover jet.

Deciding more Intel was needed the evil sidekick ordered a profile dossier of the Possibles from Henchco and because of the premium service package he had, Dr. Drakken could get profiles on 'civilians' for free. Unfortunately for Drakken, Henchco classified Kim as a 'Class A-plus Hero' meaning it cost a hundred thousand dollars to assemble the dossier. Shego ignored Dr. Drakken's rant on expenses and spent the better part of a morning along with a pot of black coffee reading….

_A born leader…can't resist a challenge…driven to excel…a perfectionist…oi, little Miss Perfect. Her brothers are just as annoying as mine only a hundred times smarter, a real pair of little genius'…pop's a rocket scientist, puh-leeze are we starting with the clichés now? Likes soccer…nerdlinger…ooh, arrested three times in Europe for soccer hooliganism, points for pops. _Smirking at that last bit of information Shego turned the page to examine Ann's profile…_her mom's a brain surgeon, ugh this is too much…_looking at the surgeon's photo the young woman was shocked to realize she recognized Kim's mother; keeping the file in hand the perplexed villain went to her quarters where she retrieved an old photo of Jhessy kissing the cheek of a bemused Dr. Ann Possible on the back of which was scrawled "My most favourite doctor!" _You always were a bit of a softy and your penmanship sucked. You said you owed your life to Dr. Ann Possible and actually wanted to repay the favour somehow. Well, that's not the way I roll little sis, but she did give me a couple more years with you before your body failed; so for you, and just for you I'll return the favour. I won't let Dr. Possible's daughter suffer any permanent harm if I'm there to help it…not that I'll go easy on her; besides, Kimmie could make a great sparring partner._

Jhessa's attention was slowly brought back to the present as she heard her name being softly called. She focused on the physician across the table, seeing soft blue eyes looking at her with concern.

"Are you all right my dear," Ann asked, "You really zoned out there for a minute, actually more like three or four, I was getting worried; did I hit a nerve with that last question?"

Jhessa glanced down at her empty mug, "Um, dunno, a forgotten memory came back and, umm, reference your question, guilty."

With a small smile the older woman refilled the mugs and changed the subject, "Have you ever heard my side of the family mentioned at all?"

"I don't think so," replied Jhessa.

With a hint of melancholy the mother explains, "That's because I don't have any. I was an orphan; I was shunted from foster home to foster home and though I was never abused I wasn't exactly nurtured either. I was never a bitch but I stopped bothering to make friends which is a habit hard to break as evidenced by the fact I have only two close friends, Ron's mother and strangely enough Bonnie's mother. When I started high school I was moved from a family in Lowerton to a new family here in Middleton. They were a middle-aged couple with no children, he was a professor at the Middleton Institute of Science and Technology and she was a head nurse at Middleton Medical Center. I hadn't realized how bleak my life was until I was shown how promising it could be; I was encouraged, nurtured, loved for the first time in my life, it was awesome. The best birthday present I ever got were signed adoption papers when I turned fifteen."

_That profiler is so getting a green enema…_"Did you try to find your real parents?" Shego asked quietly.

"It turned out Mama was one of the nurses who attended my birth. I was born to a teen mom in a hospital in Denver; she said the young mother was just your basic average girl, pretty with red hair and green eyes, I was named after her. Sometimes I look at Kimmie and wonder if I'm not looking at my mother. Mama wanted to adopt me then but she was unmarried at the time. When she married and discovered she couldn't have her own kids she did some discreet searching and tracked me down."

"So what happened to your adoptive parents?"

"Mama died of a stroke right in front of me in this kitchen, by the fridge," Ann's eyes retreated into a distant memory, "…it was a special Saturday breakfast to celebrate my acceptance at Upperton University, hash browns, bacon, baked beans, eggs…papa's 'five-year-old-coffee' recipe, mama was going to fetch the eggs when it happened; papa died of a heart attack almost exactly a year later, I think it was more from a broken heart. I received this house and money as an inheritance; I kept the house because it's large, perfect for a large family with plenty of space for visiting family and friends. The money I used to study medicine and become a brain surgeon in honour of them. Papa had already introduced me to James and during that time he helped me get through it. I grew to love James and we got married, I enjoyed his positive attitude to things. When Kimmie was born I promised she would have at least one sibling and spend as much time with family as possible; thus our game nights with June and her boy Larry and our visits to Slim and Joss in Montana. The holidays, especially Christmas, are sacrosanct as family events; and seeing Kim and Ron so tight warms my heart every day, I hope it never ends. All our children are encouraged and nurtured to be the best at whatever they want to do; I told Kimmie once, that as long as it didn't hurt anyone she could do anything she wanted to do and if helped someone so much the better. She took it to mean she was capable of doing anything she set her mind to. This is where you come in Jhessa."

"Uh-huh."

"The boys like you but Kimmie is a special case, she loves Jhessa and idolizes Shego; I want to make sure we are all on the same page. If you want to be a role model to the kids I expect you to give them the same encouragement to excel as we do. You also need to keep an eye on Kimmie's temper. James and I have encouraged her to talk things out and for the most part she's improving; but set her off and she's more likely to bend, fold, mutilate and otherwise rearrange anatomy to get her point across. I'm surprised Bonnie is still in one piece and I honestly think Arnie Custer got off easy."

The teen smiled brightly, "I think Kimmie has the potential to make a name for herself and as for her temper I'm more than willing to help her with that. By the way, does she know who I am?"

"She's noted the physical similarities between Jhessa and Shego, a few more clues and she'll figure things out; she's not stupid just young. As for me I'm a little torn, I've that stupid confidentiality agreement I have to abide versus my desire to tell Kimmie all. You could tell her of course, I don't get the super hero secret identity thing but she might. By the way, is this college thing for real?"

"Yeah, I actually plan to retire from the hero business altogether and teach; it's important to mould minds early if they are to deal with the future. We have one major villain to put away, he's called the Mathter."

"The master of what?"

"No, it's actually Mathter, he's a lame math villain who's trying to get revenge on Go City, don't ask."

After pouring more coffee for the two of them Ann looked intently at the younger woman, "Now, about us."

_Woohoo, here it comes._

"First off, are you lesbian?'

Shego thought for a moment, "I don't know?"

Ann sat for a moment looking closely at the teen then responded, "I'll accept that answer at face value for now, there are homosexuals who have gone through a period of uncertainty before committing themselves. I'm actually rather indifferent to whether someone is gay or not, it's their choice. However, let me make this clear, if Kim chooses an alternative lifestyle it shall be a choice she makes for herself not one made for her; are we clear on that? As for me I'm hetero so there won't be an 'us'," the redhead smiled, "On the other hand, getting crushed on by a beautiful young woman half my age, and a superhero at that is a great ego boost and at least you managed to maintain some composure, poor James couldn't even form a complete sentence around me when we first met."

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure."

"Did you get involved in anything in school like cheerleading or something?"

"Not cheerleading but I was on the swim team in university. I did alright, always finished in the top four, I cut quite the figure in a swim suit if I do say so myself. I did pretty well with the weight training I could bench a little over two hundred and only had some nice tone and not a lot of bulk to show for it which is good since sleek is better for swimming. It was fun arm wrestling macho boys for a beer. I still swim, not quite as much as back in the day, but it does improve my stamina for those long stints in surgery. It must be something in my genetics because Kimmie is strong for her age; Master Po, told me she's as strong as the thirteen and fourteen year old boys. He's also concerned she enjoys tossing the older boys around a little too much."

Suddenly the sound of the front door opening accompanied by a stampede of small feet and a chorus of high pitched and frantic barking shattered the adult time being shared in the kitchen. The Tweebs, Ron, Tara and Amanda charged into the kitchen like a pack of baying bloodhounds, circling the kitchen once before bolting straight for the fridge, the little blue-eyed blonde fitting in a cheery greeting to the women; the pack retreated to the family room, arms loaded with snackage. Kim went straight to her mother to give a generous hug and a kiss on the cheek, and upon seeing Jhessa smiled brightly also giving her a tight hug.

"Mom,..."

The younger redhead turned excited green eyes to her mother, "…whew."

The sitter smirked, "Nice lungs Pumpkin."

"That's nice Kimmie, but next time use punctuation and yes you may help Mrs. Mahoney this weekend, I'll give her a call," responded Ann with a smile, "Oh, and get cleaned up we have that appointment at the orthodontist."

* * *

"Remember Cupcake, you don't necessarily hit the other guy more often than he hits you to win, just hitting him before he hits you is more energy efficient. Blocking an attack requires you to match his energy with yours; following with a counterattack ends up being two movements. Parrying his attack merely redirects the energy which requires less effort on your part. Combining a counterattack with that parry minimizes time and is also energy efficient; this is where you have to be flexible and be willing to use the fighting style that best fits the situation."

After supper a slightly tired Kim puts another tape in the VCR to review footage of Team Go fighting to see if she could apply any of Shego's moves into her own personal style.

* * *

Jhessa was actually enjoying herself at the track and field meet more than she expected; the fact that Kim was blowing away the competition helped a lot and listening to Bonnie rant in frustration when her rival won was always entertaining. To be fair the little brunette was always in second and even then well ahead of the rest of the pack. The teen actually felt like the proud big sister.

Participation was mandatory by order of Vice-Principal Barkin, unless one was injured, so even Ron had to compete; however, between Kim, Tara and Amanda he had his own private cheer squad for encouragement. In fact the blond came in third overall in the hundred meter sprint behind Walter and Vinnie; the fact Nate and Zach were also in the same heat might have added motivation. The teen could not help but notice the look of envy on Walter's face when Ron received a congratulatory hug from Kim.

It was a given that Kim would top every event; that was not important to the redhead. All that mattered to her was beating her previous performance, thrusting her hand in the air when successful or brooding when not. When the little athlete beat her previous high jump record by five and a half inches she treated everybody to a cartwheel, back flip, handspring and arm thrust; receiving a high five from Walter.

Even Jhessa ended up having her own bit of fun. Mr. Barkin had been hitting on her all morning and she was ignoring him for the most part until she noticed Miss Riddle giving her the evil eye…_ok, you're on sister…_so with an evil smirk the teen called out in the perkiest voice she could muster, "Oh Stevie, wait up."

The last big event of the day was the fifth graders four hundred meter relay, the track having been laid out around the soccer field. The boys went first and of course Walter's team won. For the girls' heat there were only two of the five teams that drew much attention: Bonnie's with Liz, Hope and Crystal; and Kim's with Jessica, Tara and Amanda.

Kim examined how Bonnie placed her team; of course the brunette took the last relay position so she could cross the finish line. Liz, the third fastest girl in the school was at the start with Crystal and Hope as the two middle runners.

The redhead realized that Liz could easily outpace Jessica, her best runner, allowing Bonnie's two middle runners to simply hold the lead since their pace equalled Tara's and Amanda's. Kim realized Bonnie would be too far ahead for even her to catch by the time she received the handoff.

Although curious, Bonnie looked with derision at Amanda taking her place as the last relay, she assumed her bitch pose, "What are you doing here loser, you actually expect to beat me to the finish line, where's Possible?" With a grin and a knowing look the chestnut haired girl merely looked towards the start line.

It took only a moment for the brunette to assess the situation, Kim would leave Liz practically standing at the start line, Jessica was faster than Crystal thus increasing the lead such that by the time Bonnie received her handoff from Hope, Amanda might be almost halfway to the finish.

As it turned out the acerbic athlete was spot on with her assessment and although a prodigious effort brought her within a pace of Kim's slowest runner, she still placed second. Bonnie was steamed enough at being beat by a fourth rate athlete, seeing her green-eyed rival with a smug look on her face made it worse. For her part, Amanda glowed with pride at receiving her first ever ribbon and putting her arm through Ron's made sure they, with their ribbons, were always in the teal-eyed girl's line of sight.

It was no surprise to anyone seeing Kim and Walter standing on the first place podium at the end of the Middleton Elementary Track and Field Day. Pleased enough with her own performance, Kim looked with satisfaction at the beaming face of Amanda. Very much like Ron in dress and deportment and very unsure of herself, she was however incredibly pretty with short, wavy chestnut hair, hazel eyes that seemed to change to gold in the right light, tawny skin and an engaging smile. Knowing she was instrumental in setting up the win the redhead nonetheless was proud of her friend crossing the finish line first, more so since it was Bonnie she beat.

Caught up in the moment, Walter leaned over towards Kim, "Way to go Muffinator."

_That is getting so old…_Irritated, the green-eyed champion turned her head, "Stop calling me Muff…."

Amidst a chorus of woots, whistles, and general applause Jhessa, Ron, Tara, Amanda and especially Bonnie stood wide-eyed and slack-jawed in disbelief as they watched Kim turn her head and give Walter a kiss on the cheek.

Off to the side a hateful young boy with a cane walked away with his two cohorts.

That evening Kimmie Cub had to endure a lengthy discourse from her dad about being too young to have a boyfriend.

* * *

"Ok Pumpkin, your best assets are your incredible speed and agility combined with a decent amount of strength not apparent at first glance since you appear slight in stature. Someone said the best defence against an attack is to not be there when it hits; your ability to dodge is uncanny; with your mobility you can practically attack from any direction at will then spring out of the way of a counter attack."

After supper an invigorated Kim inserted a tape in the VCR. While listening to the comments of the news reporter she grinned when she overheard Shego in the background, "Let's go Mego, the Wego's are hungry and the little spuds' whining is driving me nuts."

* * *

The first illicit surveillance camera was found quite by accident; angering the girl…_you're so busted. _The incident was not reported because it would warn the perpetrators and as much hard evidence as possible had to be acquired. Determining the guilty parties was a no-brainer and after studying their habits she formulated a plan. The mission had to be accomplished without the higher-ups interfering so she had a diversion set up which would give her a window of opportunity of about an hour, more than she would need.

On the day of the mission the determined girl snuck to where her targets were watching their computer monitor and was amazed at the coverage their cameras had; at least one in every room with one having six. Backing off she waited for the first one to leave for the washroom; advancing quietly to the one by the computer she quickly hooked her arm around his neck to choke off any outcry and applied a large square of duct tape to muffle any noise. Her strength made any attempts at escape futile and it only took a few moments to bind her captive. The young operative waited for the accomplice….

* * *

Jhessa's voice could be heard as the front door opened, "Honestly Ronnie, I couldn't stand that place; it reeked of burnt pizza." The sitter stumbled into Ron and followed his gaze to see the Tweebs hanging by their wrists on ropes tied to the balcony rail of the front hall. That in itself was an attention grabber, the fact the two boys were stark naked really topped it off.

Kim smiled mischievously, "So Ron, did you enjoy playing that new Captain Constellation arcade game at the Partytorium?"

"Sure did KP, thanks for the money," replied the blond happily, "I managed to get Jhessa to play too, man she was killing aliens like she had a grudge or somethin'. Oh and Amanda was there with her mom waiting to pick up a pizza and I think she wanted to play too but she didn't have any money so I shared some of the money you gave me with Amanda, hope that's alright."

"Oh Ron, that was too sweet, of course I don't mind," said a pleased Kim.

_Sure, a real little Sir Lancelot…_Looking at the girl Jhessa groused, "At least we had something to do, they claimed the order was meant to be picked up an hour later."

Olive eyes looked with exaggerated contriteness at the babysitter, "Oopsy, did I phone in the wrong pickup time? I'm sorry," then fired off a puppy dog pout.

"Wow KP, your brothers are really hung," exclaimed the blond causing the teen to chortle uncontrollably.

"I was the best knot tier in my Pixie Den," smiled Kim, "And thanks for the distraction Ron, you were a great help."

"Anytime KP," replied the proud friend.

_Wha'…they just pegged me for a spud with a home made mission…at ten… I'll have to rewrite their profiles…_"Princess, I'm impressed with this uh mission you and Ronnie pulled off, it's a work of art. What do you call it?" asked a still giggling Jhessa.

The young girl glared at her brothers, "I dunno, operation revenge for scenario five, I guess. You guys should know better, I always catch you."

Ron added ominously, "I think it'll be called two weeks grounding once your mom and dad find out."

Reaching into her brown bear back pack Kim pulled out a tangled mass of wires and mini-cams then some video tapes, "And they'll also find out about how the Tweebs spied on everyone in the house. I found a camera in every room with six in my room alone and two in mom and dad's and these little cameras look pretty cutting edge; how much ya wanna bet they came from the space center?"

Judging by the Tweeb's expression in their eyes Jhessa offered a solution, "I figure I'll be babysitting you guys this summer so I offer a deal; peace between you two spuds…"

The younger girl's ears perked up, _Spuds, who talks like that? _Then her eyes narrowed in suspicion momentarily.

"…and Kimmie till school starts again and this evidence stays in my safe keeping, any conflicts started by you and this evidence becomes public knowledge." Pulling a camera out of her purse and passing it to the still pondering girl added, "Here Kimmie, you can add a little extra leverage for when school starts, and once your done...gee Princess, enjoying yourself much…get your brothers down and dressed 'cause I've got three pizzas and six quarts of soda to watch 'Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 3' and 'Independence Day'."

* * *

Shego sprinted down the main hallway of her school trying to get to the gymnasium before the Cheer Regionals finished; the cheers, applause and booming music reverberating all around. The teen had promised to be there to watch _her_ lead the cheer squad to victory. As the anxious sprinter rounded a corner and approached the gym doors everything became silent; suddenly overcome with loneliness the young woman realized she had broken her promise and missed the competition. Nonetheless the teen entered the gym, elbowing past the people leaving and made it inside just in time to see a flash of red hair as the door to the locker room closed. She hears a loud sharp whistle and the distraught teen turns to look into the stands, seeing herself standing in her green and black body suit returning the gaze. The doppelganger shook her head slowly. The confused young woman realizes the green and black coloured sections of the other woman's outfit are reversed….

The babysitter woke with a start, needing a few moments to gain her bearings; looking around she realized she was sitting in the armchair of the Possible's family room. _This dream is getting so old…_Shego sighs heavily…_Uncle Percy is still playing catch-up with the scans but he guesses my sudden crush may not have been hormones but the two memory templates coinciding on Jhessy's emergency visit at Go Memorial. So maybe it's gratitude. Is she my hero on a subconscious level? Crushing on the woman's a little over the top…but what's not to like, she's smart and cute…gaaggh, stop it Ravens you don't even swing that way…._

A voice giggled, "Sure you do, I'm exactly you and I do."

With a huff and a soft growl Jhessa turned her head toward the voice, "Give it a rest Jhessy," and realized there was no one there.

The confused young woman rubbed her eyes hard with the palms of her hands_…you're losin' it Ravens…_turned off the TV and VCR and looked around. The empty pizza boxes on the coffee table reaffirmed her opinion that there was no such thing as leftover pizza in the Possible household. The twins were on the couch entangled in pillows, blankets and each other, mouths open and drooling; they reminded her of a couple of puppies. On the floor Shego saw Ron spread inelegantly, limbs splayed out; beside him lay Kim neatly wrapped in a blanket, clutching her Pandaroo to her chest, back snuggled against her best friend and head pillowed on his arm…_hey, never noticed before; is that the shape of her mouth when she's relaxed or is that a little smile?_.

Jade eyes beheld the future Team Possible and the hero-villain reflected, _No wonder you were...will…are…argh! a solid team at sixteen, you started early. Ten years old and the sidekick–to-be already has your back covered in his sleep, Kimmie._

* * *

After supper Kim, exultant after kicking Jhessa's butt during that day's sparring, grabbed her parents' video cam to examine the footage at the dojo, she wanted to learn any new tricks to repeat the performance. After a few minutes the redhead's brow furrowed; selecting a certain tape for the VCR she inserted it and pressed play. The next hour or so saw extensive use of the pause buttons and perusal of several of confiscated 'surveillance' tapes.

* * *

**The we****ek before Middle School**

Anguished, the younger redhead yelled at her mother, "It's not fair, I can't be having braces now, Bonnie will have a field day humiliating me!"

Walking into the kitchen Jim and Tim interjected, "You're just upset…"

"…you won't be able…"

"…to do kissie-face…"

"…with your boyfriend Walter."

The already angry girl screamed, "HE'S NOT MY BOYFRIEND!" With a predatory glare aimed at her brothers asked, "Jhessa, what was the shutter speed on that camera you loaned me?"

Turning her head to hide a smirk from Ann the teen answered, "Oh I think it was set at ISO 200 Cupcake."

With scowls on their faces the twins each grabbed a juice box from the fridge, "Let's go wait out front for Ron Jim, we'll get cooties if we stay in here listening to girl talk."

Taking a sip of her coffee the mother knew she had just missed something but was confident she would get to the bottom of it eventually, "Kimmie, I can talk to Bonnie's mom, maybe she can get Bonnie to ease off."

"You ought to know better than that, she doesn't listen to her mother anymore than she does to anyone else, you can't tell her anything. You might as well tattoo 'Out of Order' behind each ear," retorted Kim.

The conversation was interrupted and everyone startled at the sound of the front door violently thrust open against the wall, eyes opening wide when they heard Tim yell, "MOM, MOM 911!"

With a surgeon for a mother combined with a family prone to adventurous injuries it had been established that a shouted 911 was to be treated as a legitimate and serious alert.

Right after Tim's shout the hysterical sobs of a young girl could be heard; Kim bolted for the front, "Mom, that's Amanda."

Passing his sister as he entered the kitchen the brother reported to his mother, "Its Ron Mom, he got beat up real bad like in there's blood everywhere!"

As she ran to the front with Jhessa, Ann yelled at her son, "Get my trauma kit stat!"

The two women ran into the family room to see Ron already on the couch with the young redhead administering first aid; nearby Amanda was shaking, tearfully mumbling repeatedly, "I'm sorry."

With tears in her eyes Kim reported to her mother, "He can talk ok but he says his ribs hurt to breath and I think is right shoulder isn't where its supposed to be, he says it hurts the worst; can't you give him something for the pain?"

Jhessa looked on intently, Ron had been worked over good; a dislocated right shoulder, possible rib injuries, the left eye swollen shut, his nose and mouth bloodied with the possibility of a concussion. She watched Amanda, still apologizing kneel next to her injured friend, giving him a quick kiss on the forehead. It was then she noticed the large contusion on the side of her face inciting sudden anger in the young woman…_figure I'm not so bad ass as to peg a coupl'o ten year olds, the perv's gonna get fisted green some nasty…_Feeling a familiar pressure building within her hands she looked down to see slender wisps of plasma dancing across them; jerking her arms behind her back she worked on calming down to dissipate the energy. Seeing Ann busy calling for an ambulance the teen turned to the kids.

"I'm sorry Ronnie, I couldn't get anybody to help, they just stood there, and when I tried he hit me with a stick," a distraught Amanda sobbed, "I wish I could've been as good as Kimmie."

"That's ok, KP's had lot's more practice at this than you," the blond replied, his voice slurred through swollen lips.

Kim spoke to Amanda, "Who hit you?"

The hazel-eyed girl wiped away tears, "Zach did this while Arnie and Nate beat up Ron."

"They were picking on Amanda at the park KP I couldn't let them do that. Sorry I couldn't stop him, he must've snuck by me while I was blocking Arnie's fists with my face," mumble Ron through swollen lips.

Giving her blond friend another kiss on the forehead the injured girl continued, "Arnie was bragging how much tougher than you he was 'cause he could beat up your best friend and you wouldn't do anything about it because you're chicken and not as tough as you make everyone think."

Her face taking on a grim cast the green-eyed girl said one word, "Where?"

"Probably his hangout in the woods," speculated Amanda.

"KP, you don't have to do this," mumbled Ron.

Jhessa looked into enraged olive eyes and suddenly remembered five time streams before the grim face of a sixteen year old Kim aiming her hairdryer at Shego, the grapple still covered in Drakken's blood. Suddenly the girl sprang up and sprinted out the door.

"Kimmie, where are you going?" shouted the confused mother, still on the phone, then looking at Jhessa, "What happened?"

"Custer called her out, he's challenging her for who's gonna be the alpha dog in middle school," looking at Ron the teen remembered the vengeful girl's expression, "but he got personal this time."

The twins confirmed Jhessa's sentiment, "We saw the fight last spring, mom, the teachers were around, she went easy on him…"

"…this time she's serious…."

"…and there ain't gonna be grownups…"

"…and she ain't takin' prisoners this time."

Ann looked back at the sitter, "I have to wait for the ambulance and set Ron's shoulder; Jhessa can you chase her down? The last time she went after another kid in that frame of mind we almost got pulled into a civil suit and she was only eight, I'd hate to think what she'd do to Arnie right now."

Determined jade eyes looked at the twins, "Where would she go?"

Amanda took a deep breath to control her sobbing, "Arnie said he'd be at his hideout if Kim has the guts to show up."

The twins spoke up, "It's a clearing in some woods at the top of the ravine…"

"…where the fitness trail does an S-bend…"

"…there's a hidden trail up the ravine that Kim and Ron use…"

"…for a short cut to the playground…"

"…go out the back yard, second bush from the right…"

"…and straight on to the top."

* * *

Kim and Ron's secret path was barely worn since they were the only ones to use it such that one could hardly tell there was anything there at all. The young Pixie took to heart the lessons on stealth and infiltration taught by her Pixie Den Mother, Mr. Barkin, thus she and her best friend never exited onto the fitness trail from the same place twice in a row.

Kim crept towards the sound of a young boy ranting; she looked up into the tree branches…_Mr. Barkin always teaches, people rarely look up_...and scampered effortlessly up a tree trunk, brachiating through the branches towards the clearing_…Ron would freak if he saw me doing this he'd think I'd gone full monkey on him._

From her vantage point above the clearing Kim watched Custer practicing a kata …_the Tiger style, it figures…_while Nate, and Zach carrying a short, stout branch, seemed to be wandering about nervously. Vengeful eyes scanned and assessed the clearing, for the coming fight she was going to take out a villain and his henchmen. Since they chose to make it personal, she chose to rearrange anatomy.

Anger seething the girl spots a slender branch about ten feet ahead of her_…that'll do…_jumping forward she grabs it, her weight bending it to function as a rope allowing Kim to swing down and connect both feet into Custer's back sending him sprawling several feet away. Doing a back flip she lands on her feet sprinting towards Nate whose shock at the redhead's sudden attack leaves him stunned into inaction much to his impending discomfort, the flying kick to his stomach persuading the contents therein to vacate rather violently.

Realizing he was outnumbered one to one Zach attempts a hasty advance to the rear only to find the trail leaving the clearing blocked by a furious girl. He was not quick enough to dodge the haymaker to the side of the head while hearing a voice speaking through clenched teeth, "That's for Amanda," and the excruciating kick to the groin punctuated with, "And that's for her pain and suffering, creep."

The young adept of the Intercepting Fist cocked her ear at a noise behind her, leaning slightly to her right she watched Arnie and his flying kick sail past.

"Agh, how'd you hear me coming, I had you," spat the frustrated bully as he recovered.

As she glided gracefully across the clearing fists at the ready the girl cast a wary eye at her first two victims, Nate suffering from dry heaves and Zach retching from the pain between his legs; she cast a stone-faced and grim gaze at Ron's tormentor.

Having gone swimming that day with Jhessa Kim was still wearing her pink one piece swimsuit, white shorts and sneakers thus Arnie was able to discern for the first time the flowing muscles gracing his opponent's body.

Manoeuvring with Kim the boy sneered at his foe, "So Possible, it's been goin' great for ya this year hasn't it? Ya think you're all that with that Supreme Leader stuff. You were just a teacher's pet, how else could your grades get better or how you never got in trouble when you butted into my business. You're a control freak, Bonnie had you figured out; I wasn't trying to control the schoolyard, all I wanted was to make sure I got respect and if someone dissed me it was my right to get that respect back and you had no business getting in the way. Bonnie told me Ron and Amanda were the worst ones dissing me behind my back so I had to teach 'em some respect when you weren't around. The royal court only made you leader because you threatened them, I know that for a fact. The same thing with track and field, Bonnie told me how everyone was afraid to try because they knew you'd beat them up if you didn't win. Bonnie's the only one with the guts to stand up to you so she's not afraid to tell the truth. And let's not forget your new boyfriend Walter, he told me he only hangs around with you 'cause it's easy getting a kiss from you."

Although Arnie's rant was not much more than venting he did expect some reaction instead he only saw the slight narrowing of green eyes already blazing with an intensity he never saw in the schoolyard, the bully assumed a defensive stance.

The gliding pace taught by Shego made it difficult for Kim's opponent to judge her speed, he couldn't tell if she ready to drop into a stance or keep moving never mind what style she was using; to Arnie it almost seemed as if the redhead were prowling. He watched her move in for an attack and he prepared for her trademark back circle kick; instead he was shocked when he barely got his leg out of the way of a crescent kick to the inside of his right knee, thinking the redhead was out of position he countered with a right cross. Bending at the waist and twisting sideways she dodged the swing, bringing up her thrusting leg into an outside crescent kick that buried itself into his ribs on the right side.

The wind knocked out of him Custer stepped back rapidly to re-establish himself…_ow, she's never hit that hard before…_only to find Kim move right in close to launch a combination punch, breaking his nose with a quick right jab, followed with a brutal left hook and left knee into already sore ribs.

Scrambling back to get some distance, ribs complaining the bully gasped out, "You're breaking tourney rules, you're supposed to back off and reset after a hit, not keep going."

The green-eyed warrior graced her opponent with a look of contempt as she continued to prowl around him, "This ain't the dojo, creep, this is the real world, no teachers, no parents, no sensei, no witnesses; this is my jungle, you're just living in it and 'though I'll stick up for anybody who gets bullied, you beat up my best friend; **this **is personal."

As Kim glided in the battered boy attacked with a roundhouse kick to her head. Twisting her torso and leaning to the left allowed his foot to sail past her shoulder; raising her right arm to brace on the inside of the ankle the determined girl mercilessly slammed her left fist three times into Custer's recently recovered knee, eliciting a sob of pain from the boy.

Before Arnie could even fall to the ground the redhead, spinning around so rapidly her ponytail extended horizontally, slammed her right elbow into her foe's face assisting his decent to the ground.

Her breathing deep yet in control the vigilante glared at her weeping foe with disdain, "Typical bully, you can dish it but you can't take it, Ron took as much if not worse from you and I didn't see him cry one bit. Who's the loser now?" Startled by the sound of clapping off to the side she looked over to see Shego and although she appeared sombre, there was definitely a glint of approval in her eyes.

"Flawless victory Kimmie, you done me proud," said the little girl's mentor; then with a scowl said, "Now finish him."

The olive-eyed girl was confused, "I already beat him, what else is there?"

"Yeah, well you know he challenged you for who was the strongest, and you won. But how did he send that challenge? Did he walk up to you on the street or in the playground to challenge you directly; no he went and beat up someone you love as much if not more than your parents. He made it personal Kim, that's outside the challenge, now it's payback time."

"So then Shego, what's the sitch for a superhero when it gets personal?"

"We're not allowed to get pers…hey!"

"You're busted Shego, I figured you out and when I told Mom she told me about the hospital thing; we'll talk later. So answer my question."

"Well, when we beat the bad guys we pretty much have to turn them in to Global Justice or the military. If they're small time to the cops. But there aren't jails for ten year olds and like I said, remember what they did to Ronnie and Amanda, this is personal. I say, payback's the sitch Kimmie, finish him."

"So how do I do that?" asked the stony-faced girl.

"Use your imagination, Princess," Shego answered with an evil smile.

Cold green eyes turned to the boy crying on the ground clutching his knee….

* * *

**Operational Log**

22 August 2029(Internal Chronology) Brigadier Monique Load, CinC Strategic Archival Intelligence reporting:

_Every mole rat of the Rufus Series that can be spared is doing reconnaissance of whenever part of the time stream we can access. The teen Kim and Ron haven't been found yet. Curiously, the 'superhero Shego' is spending a lot of time with a young Kim; don't know if this good or bad._

_The Supreme One did an extensive elimination of all historical records, presumably to destroy all evidence of how she came to power. However we have a breakthrough, an old hard drive found in the ruins of an old office building offered two words of interest: GoCorp and neuro-compliance chip._

* * *

**A/N**

A factor I considered important in Shego's behaviour was the psychological impact of her middle-aged mind melded with her cloned teen body. Besides the original issues she had about cloning in the first place I looked at two other references. The first is from "Kimitation Nation" when Drakken creates the synthoclone of Bonnie and discovers the apparently inherent hatred of Kim carries through with the DNA to become a behavioural characteristic of the clone. The second example is drawn from an episode of "Star Trek Enterprise". In the episode the chief engineer is injured and requires an organ transplant to survive. A clone is created from which the required organ will be harvested. As the clone grows (at an accelerated rate) to the required age matching that of the engineer's the original memories surface and mingle with the new memories of the 'sim'. This elicits a myriad confusion and emotional turmoil for the 'simulated engineer' over which memories are inherent and which are his. In short, Shego's middle-aged mind is not necessarily in control of the inherent memories of the teen body; the slang from her teen years represents the influence of those memories on her.

I shall raise another point. An anonymous reviewer, after commenting on this story, chose to use the review platform to utter derogatory comments about another individual. To this reviewer I say the inclusion of disparaging opinions of others does not belong in a review and such behaviour I consider unprofessional and bad form all around.


	4. Rockets Are Go!

**Can I Be Your Sidekick?**

**Chapter 4**

**Disclaimer: **_Kim Possible belongs to Disney, only the story is mine, I'm just doing this for fits and giggles._

_The plot bunny for this story was originally conceived by the last scene in_ "The Twin Factor" _with additional inspiration from_ "ASiT" and "Stop Team Go"_._

_Also, my thanks to all those who read and reviewed. _

* * *

**Journal**

_I have to make sure Kimmie becomes and stays the hero otherwise the plan goes south. She has to be prepared to deal with the consequences of her actions; even good deeds can spawn negative outcomes. _

_Good Idea/Bad Idea: Good idea - Team Possible; Bad idea - Team Zorpox._

* * *

The cold green eyes that had been gazing at the injured boy moved to look at the little redhead with grim satisfaction_…Bawd, that was balls nasty; take out the time for Dumdum's rant and Princess nuked the spud in less than a minute…that's the edge I'm looking for, I knew she had it…figure like she__** was **__holding back when she gets older... _Kim speaking brought Shego back in the moment.

Her adrenaline still up the redhead glared impatiently at the teen, "I don't care about any lame challenge; this was payback for what he and his buddies did. I did to them what they did to my friends; the only difference was I gave Arnie a dislocated knee instead of a shoulder." Shego noted with interest the little victor's apparent matter of fact attitude to the injuries she had inflicted upon her opponent.

Momentarily distracted by Zach's hasty and clumsy retreat through the bushes the girl notes Nate stayed, standing unsteadily yet quietly, nervously switching his gaze between Arnie, Kim and Shego. The redhead turns her eyes to her foe whose sobbing had diminished to anguished moans and the odd painful gasp as he tried to find a comfortable position for his leg. "As for you Custer, you've always been a royal pain ever since pre-K but you've been especially jerkish for the past year or so. I'm really getting sick of this, when are you gonna learn to stay down?"

Arnie spat back, "The day you're finally sick of this will be the day I'll learn **you** to stay down and keep **your** place."

Crossing her arms over her chest Kim gives the boy a level gaze, "And what place is that supposed to be?"

"That a guy is always better than a girl. Bonnie knows it she knows how to show a man respect…."

Kim interrupted the boy's diatribe with a snort of derision, "Respect, Bonnie doesn't show respect to anybody unless she expects to get something out of…" With a sudden look of realization the girl gave Shego a questioning look, "Bonnie didn't do what I think she did; this wasn't her idea was it?"

"Hard to say," The teen narrowed her eyes at the boy…_misogynistic little brat..._ "And where, pray tell, did you acquire such an infinitely profound bit of wisdom about inequality of the sexes?"

"My dad says so," he replied defiantly.

Shifting her weight to one leg and placing her fists on her hips the raven-haired teen leaned forward sneering, "First of all, Dumdum, Puddin's been playing you, and your dad's full of it; tell me, what's your dad gonna do when he finds out you've had your ass handed back to you again, by the same girl?" Noticing his eyes widen slightly with realization she mocked, "Yeah, I bet he ain't gonna be too happy will he?"

Shego's comment brought a sudden and chilling thought to Kim…_Aw man! I'm so in it deep with Dad, I hope Mom backs me up; she did see what happened to Ron..._She turned to the hero, "Let's get him to the hospital Jhessa; isn't that, like, what a hero would do, show compassion, even to the bad guy?"

Incredulous, the hero-villain looked at the young girl as if she had two heads, a selection of sarcastic remarks awaiting release; instead she bit her tongue and although not necessarily inclined to be especially gentle, she picked up Arnie and followed Kim to the house.

Watching the trio leave Nate was uncertain as to what to do at first. Despite everything the two combatants were to each other there was one thing he would concur to, if Kim said she was taking his best friend to the hospital then that was where Arnie was going. Feeling somewhat reassured the large boy limps home.

Upon arriving at Kim's house the duo discovered Ron, Amanda and Mrs. Possible had already left for the hospital. One of Amanda's older sisters, Sherri, who was entering her sophomore year at Middleton High and on the cheer squad, was hurriedly recruited by Ann to baby sit the Tweebs.

Watching Jhessa put the injured boy into her car Sherri spoke quietly to Kim, "You did a real number on him, not that he doesn't deserve it after I saw Ron and my little sister. Now his dad's gonna do a number on him for losing another fight, and to a girl no less."

Keeping her voice down as well Kim responded bitterly, "I hope he gets grounded for a month."

Suddenly melancholy, her face taking on a sombre cast, Sherri turned Kim around to look at her, "No Kim, Arnie's dad is gonna beat the crap out of him then his mom will have to take him down to Emerg and make up a story for the nurses like '…he fell out a tree…'. She'll have a hard time explaining two sets of injuries this time."

Incredulous the young girl raised an eyebrow, "And you know this how?"

"You remember Marge, she babysat you a few times; she's Arnie's sister and she needs someone to talk to once in a while and she's my best friend. She's on the cheer squad with me; it helps to blame the tumbling routines for the bruises. And Arnie getting into fights at school and taking kung fu…just another way to explain away injuries."

Kim raised her eyebrows, giving Sherri her full attention, "Marge gets hit by her dad too; why?"

"Her mom also gets hit, apparently it's for being disrespectful; the man is way beyond creepy, he's totally whack. When Arnie lost that fight to you last spring his dad got extra mad and punished him for losing respect to a girl."

"This stuff happens for real? I only see this stuff on TV and I figured they just made a big deal of it for the drama…it really happens around here?"

Amanda's sister put her arm around the younger girl, "'Fraid so Kimmie."

"So why don't you say something to someone?"

"Like I said, Marge is my best friend and she made me promise not to say anything because she's afraid to be split up from her mom and brother. Although, if it gets too out of hand I will say something."

With a pensive look the redhead spoke with a small voice, "This is so sick and wrong Sherri, I can't even imagine my parents hitting me for **any** reason; and his dad is gonna hit him, not for starting a fight with a girl, but for losing a fight to a…me. Aw man, that is so not fair, I'm beating him for being the bad guy; and his dad hits him for not being bad enough…_maybe Dad's right about violence not solving things. _

Although the young girls' conversation was inaudible to Arnie, it was easily picked up by Shego's sharp ears. Turning around she saw the look of doubt on the green-eyed girl's face…_damn, I can't have Pumpkin second-guessing herself…_ "Let's go Kimmie I'm sure Ron would be happy to see you."

The ride to the hospital was uncomfortable for everyone.

Walking to the emergency entrance the trio had to wait as three ambulances pulled up. Normally interested in such happenings, Kim instead ran straight inside followed at a distance by Jhessa carrying Arnie. She ran up to one of the nurses at the triage, "Hi Nancy is my mom still here?"

"Hi Kimmie, yeah, she's in Observation Six with your friends. Stay close to your mom though, we just received three car crash victims and things are going to get a little funky for a while."

"You got it and thanks."

Being quite familiar with the layout of the medical centre the little girl had no problem reaching her objective despite having to dodge a couple of crash-carts on their way to Emerg. She found her mom and Amanda sitting beside Ron who was still in bed. Both injured friends' injuries were cleaned and bandaged up, the blond more so than the brunette; gingerly the redhead gave her friends each a hug. Noticing an IV attached to her best friend's arm she looked at her mother who explained, "It's just something for the pain; he'll be prescribed some pain killers. The ribs are only bruised, and with the shoulder he'll probably be excused from PhysEd for a while; I've already called the Stoppables and they're coming to pick him up."

The blond stared at Kim's arm; speaking through a swollen lip Ron asked his best friend, "What happened to Arnie, KP?" Following his gaze the junior redhead realized there was dried blood on her elbow from when she hit her opponent in the face. Suddenly feeling uncomfortable she bit her lip and turned her eyes away from her life-long friend who, in turn, dropped his eyes in disappointment; the exchange was lost on neither Ann nor Amanda.

Just then Nancy poked her head from around the curtain, "Dr. Possible we could use your help in ER; we just admitted an injured boy but the paediatrician on call is busy with the child car crash victim. I know you're off duty but could you help for a bit, I've got a Sunshine Spreader to watch the kids."

Dr. Possible smiled, "No problem Nancy; you guys behave till the Stoppables come to pick up Ron. Kimmie, I'm sure Ron's parents will give you and Amanda a ride home; Sherri will stay until your father gets home."

As the two women walked to one of the treatment rooms Nancy kept the pace slow as she briefed Ann on the situation, whispering, "The boy arrived with head trauma including a broken nose, sore ribs and an almost dislocated knee. He says he fell out of a tree but I'm sceptical. You see, over the past year he's been almost a regular; he's often brought in by his mother for treatments of injuries we don't believe are just childhood misadventures. Not only him but on occasion the mother herself and an older sister; this incident is the last straw, I'm filing a report to involve Child Protective Services."

Grim faced Ann asked, "Did his mother bring him in?"

"No, a young woman brought him in," whispered the triage nurse as they entered the room.

Upon seeing Jhessa, Ann looked over at the patient already dressed in a hospital gown, the blood on his face being cleaned off by an orderly, "Arnie Custer I presume." Upon seeing the startled boy nod she continued, "I haven't seen Marge in almost a year, she used to baby sit Kim and her brothers; how is she these days?"

The injured boy shrugged, "Okay, I guess."

The surgeon pulled the surprised nurse back into the hall and whispered, "You might want to hold off on the report for now Nancy, despite what you've been told I believe he is the one who hurt Ron; I also believe what happened to this boy is Kimmie dishing out payback."

Nancy's eyes opened wide, "Little Kimmie did that?"

The redhead crossed her arms across her chest, "Remember last year the big guy from the bar fight who tried to drag his 'buddy' from Treatment Two before I was finished with him? He made the mistake of getting between me and my patient; the fact he outweighed me by seventy-three pounds didn't stop me from decking him. My little girl comes by it naturally and her temper's worse," after a moments pause the physician added conspiratorially, "you won't tell her about that; will you?"

Returning to the room Ann asked Jhessa to wait outside. Although complying willingly the raven-haired woman felt it a good idea to listen in from outside the door. A few hours later Dr. Possible was consulting with the on-call orthopaedic surgeon as she examined an x-ray, "Hank, this looks like he had a spiral fracture on the right femur; aren't those caused by a violent twisting motion?"

Looking at the boy's file he answered, "Yeah, at fourteen months he allegedly fell off the arm of the couch onto his sister's dollhouse; however, it was the first time we saw him and his parents did some fast talking. Anyway, he'll be in a knee brace with crutches this time. The young woman who brought him in believes he fell out of a tree by the fitness trail, although she admits she didn't actually see the fall. She says she carried him out of the woods to the hospital. Since you seem to know her do you have any reason to believe otherwise?"

Ann responded carefully, "I believe what she told the triage nurse is the truth,"_…if not the whole truth" _Once it was determined that Mrs. Custer was arriving to pick up her son the surgeon collected the paperwork for signing and filing. Walking to the Emerg office the senior redhead took her sitter for a short walk, "So, how many times did he fall out of this alleged tree?"

"Oh, about fourteen times," quipped Jhessa. Noticing Ann was not impressed she continued, "Actually, that's payback, Kim style; she did that to him and took out his henchmen in just over a minute." In the background the two women could hear the faint monotone of a heart monitor flat lining followed by urgent voices and the sound of a defibrillator in action.

"Interesting how you used 'henchmen' to describe the other boys, Shego. What have you been teaching Kim these past few months; this episode makes me wonder. James and I thought we were making progress on Kim's anger management now this happens. And yet I'm torn. On the one hand I don't want my daughter to resort to violence to solve all her problems; on the other hand I could give her a high-five for giving Arnie a taste of his own medicine. Kimmie can get a little possessive and overprotective of those she cares about; I think she gets that from James and me and I'm glad to see she would be willing to stick up for friends and family when the need arises. I need to finish up here, you may as well go. After James and I talk about this we'll give you a call."

"Please, Ann, I wasn't being smart with the henchman comment because that's what Arnie is; his dad is the villain," explained Jhessa, "Kimmie can beat the crap out of Arnie till she rots; as long as his dad is there to provide impetus this situation will continue. Take it from me, when most henchmen have no one to prod them on they lose cohesion and are no longer effective. Give me a few days before you make any major decision." Kim's mother did not answer.

As the surgeon continued with her paperwork at the nurse's station she noticed how quiet the emergency ward had become; looking up she noticed Nancy coming out from the trauma section, her eyes in tears, "Nancy, what happened?"

"We lost the young one from the car crash," replied the head nurse as she wiped away a tear.

Blue eyes gazed with compassion at the head nurse and in a voice that Jhessa swore could have passed for a hug, asked, "How old?"

"About ten or eleven."

As she heard the news Jhessa suddenly felt all choked up and turned her head feeling tears form in her eyes_…what the...maximum composure…as in total lack of…don't go all billy now Ravens, this feeling sorry for someone was Jhessy's thing not yours…time was you'd have somethin' smart-mouthed to say. _Her reaction was noticed curiously by Ann.

"Okay, Jhessa, you have till Labour Day, by then, in light of what just happened we'll want to set the ground rules for the new school year."

Outside the hospital Jhessa stopped and thought about Kim's expression before coming to the hospital, pulling out her cell phone she dialled her corporate office, "Kasey, set up a meeting for me at one o'clock tomorrow…yeah, call in a few lawyers…family law, criminal, and Jonesy…good girl…_figure Cupcake and composure might have a falling out…don't need her boggins else momma might get all red-alert on me… Kimmie needs to learn connections…no shiv but Custer's old man gonna get pegged radical._

* * *

Kim sat dejectedly on the couch in the family room; she was awaiting some ultimate decree from her parents however, she only saw them chat briefly and although her dad was obviously not happy he kept mum. Realizing some heavy drama was inevitable the Tweebs decided a discrete withdrawal to the workshop in the basement, to continue work on their super-top-secret project, was in order.

The girl was doubly so in a funk, not only was she unable to meditate to calm the turmoil in her head her favourite cartoon show since Pre-K, 'My Little Cuddlebuddy', had been finally cancelled. She remembered fondly how the show could be seen three times a day during the week and twice a day on the weekends. Then over the spring and summer the showings decreased to the point she could only catch an episode once a week and today of all days it was pulled off the air completely. For the time being she was tuned in to a show Ron, Amanda and her brothers enjoyed watching immensely, 'Pinky-Joe and the Cerebellum'. As far as the little redhead was concerned the whole take over the world thing did not make any sense to her; she saw through the plans at the outset and easily figured out how it would fail…_and don't get me started on the sidekick who can't stay focused._

However, the TV was the last thing on her mind, unfocused eyes not registering the images nor ears acknowledging the dialogue, as her mind spun around the aftermath of the fight and fretting over the, as yet, undisclosed consequences…_I definitely pushed Dad's peeve-button __**and**__ ground his beans…mom and dad not saying anything is freaking me out…I'll probably get pulled out of kung-fu…I know there'll be a long conference with the 'rents …and there's the thing with Arnie and his dad…whenever I don't succeed Mom and Dad help me out and encourage me to try again… if what Sherri_ _says is true, Arnie just gets punished for losing…but not for doing something bad like bullying people…that is so sick and wrong… it seemed so simple, stop the bully by telling the yard hag, he gets detention but by then he's already hurt somebody…but he doesn't mind detention because it doesn't hurt …to keep him from hurting others I have to hurt him first then he gets home and his dad hurts him for losing…_A sudden thought gave Kim a sick feeling in her gut; pulling her knees up under her chin she wrapped her arms around her legs…a_w man, this is so wrong; because of me Arnie gets hurt worse by his dad._

* * *

_Dammit, I wasn't fast enough…_Restraining the struggling and belligerent man the green and black member of Team Go shouted to the stunned woman, "Mrs. Custer, listen to me, is Arnie still breathing…."

* * *

Shego worked quickly to take advantage of the time Ann gave her; Kim would be easy enough to mould however, if her mother was not on board it would be impossible. Thus she did everything she could to make this operation appear as legitimate as could be. Using Team Go and GoCorp assets she collected everything related to the Custer family; police and medical reports, notes from social workers, schools and employee files, "…_bawd, no shiv but figure like my Attitude Adjustment__ Centres__ couldn't mess up these spuds this bad…Billy-Joe Jim-Bob Custer, heh, figure like Soulless Worker Drone wouldn't be an improvement." _The best lawyers were gathered, family support prepared, surveillance equipment secretly installed in the house; Shego included a personal walk by the Custer home to get a feel for the neighbourhood. The overall situation was that the family was uneasily awaiting the return of the father from a fishing trip sometime just before school started. It was very important that Shego of Team Go be the attending officer, "_..the worst part about all this is if I pull this off Hego won't let me hear the end of how proud he was of me and how I boosted Team Go's reputation…Mego would want to get some of the spotlight, ugh."_

After an early evening supper at the office with her personal assistant, "_ought to promote her to sidekick..." _Shego leaned back in her office chair. With her legs up on the desk, a cup of coffee in her hand, Shego watched her aide feeding the piranha, "What do you think Kasey, could we get away with a piranha-filled moat around the building?"

The red-haired assistant giggled, blue eyes shining with mischief, "To be sure you'd be the first on the block to have one, Miss Jhessa; 'twould be a great way to hide evidence it would."

_Damn, I love that lilting Irish brogue; I practically hired her on the spot on that alone but she's got talent and worth every penny of the six figures I pay…what's creeping me out is the feeling I know her from somewhere, but then ever since Ann's story I'm constantly checking out tall redheads with blue or green eyes...but your sitch- _I did **not** just say that- _Kasey O'Clery, says something to me…you were raised in Ireland, but born in the States... four years younger than Ann and like her you don't come close to looking it…you're tall as me, athletically fit and smart as a whip...but what really pegs my composure radical ain't just that your hair and eyes match Ann's, the little spray of freckles across that nose and the smile could've been transplanted from Cupcake herself…or am I seeing too much into things… either way I'd be crushing on her if I was a guy._

"Bawd, sis, figure I ain't seen ya checkin' out legs all the time, especially my squeeze Kasey, when ya thought I wasn't lookin', an' I don't shiv;" sweetly giggled a voice from behind Jhessa.

"Oi, not this again; you boggins Jhessy, and I keep sayin' sure Kasey talks high school, but she walks post-grad," answered the teen wearily as she turned her head in the direction of her cloned sister's voice…and saw no one there.

Confused, the blue-eyed assistant turned to her employer, "Did you say something, Miss Jhessa?"

Before the disoriented Shego could answer, the phone rang, Kasey skipping over to answer it, "Hello, Miss Green's office…hi Jonesy…of course I'll be tellin' her, bye love. Jonesy reports that Custer changed his itinerary and will be home any time now."

The teen woman cursed as she got up, "Shit, he's a day early; hold the fort Kasey." Picking up a pager-like device Shego spoke into it as she ran to get changed into her Team Go persona, "Jhessy, wake up."

A perky, youthful female voice responded, "Wattup big sis?"

"Spool up and wake up owl, turn to page three and hook me up to Boyfriend; I'm coming out now."

"Property damage?"

"9-1-1."

"Real cool, billy out in four minutes twenty-three seconds."

"Aces."

Kasey smirked, bemused, "_Who would' a thought I'd be workin' for a superhero who's takin' over the world…quite smoothly so far…and talks with her personal jet like they're twin sisters in high school…kinda like how me own little twin sisters talk…now if I could just figure out who else is in her head."_

On the roof beside the penthouse Shego sprinted to a small green and black jet, its twin engines idling. Having strapped in and adjusted her helmet the hero slid down the visor, activating the built in heads-up-display. Using voice commands she activates the aircraft's electronics, "Times seven… IFCS on…battle off…stab off…hydraulics on…emergency up…guns off…drift eliminated…observing to my front." With the last command she stared straight ahead, a small line of light scanning across the pilot's eyes from the visor.

The Jhessy AI chirped in cheerfully, "Good to hear from you sweetie; I could stare at those beauteous eyes forever," concluding the voice recognition and retina scan security protocol.

Instinctively scanning the darkening sky around her the raven-haired pilot directs her jet, "Hummingbird plus two hundred feet and owl out of Upperton Jhessy then billy out to Middleton; just follow the script on page three. Where's Boyfriend?"

"Figure like you ain't too bossy today ain't ya; I'll do it only 'cause I love ya and we're family," giggled the AI, the jet banking smartly as its course matched the directions of the programmed flight plan.

The masked teen spoke up as Agent Jones appeared in a small video monitor built into the visor, "Talk to me Jonesy; I'm flying in on stealth mode so I won't be transmitting much but I want to know if things go south."

"Right now he's ranting about the bad luck he had fishing, the wife and son are home but the daughter is at cheer leader practice for a while longer, ETA undetermined."

The flight to Middleton was not a long one, still the jade-eyed woman fretted somewhat, "_I hope Pumpkin appreciates this …can't let her stop from saving the world just because she's afraid of hurting an innocent in the process…'rescuing' Arnie might reassure Kimmie…gotta time this right, catching him hitting the wife won't get as good a result as him hitting the kid…but there's the trick, if the boy gets terminated Cupcake will be in a funk for a long time…I might lose her altogether." _

An incoming message from Agent Jones interrupted the reverie, "Ma'am, he's brandishing a pistol and threatening the boy, the mother is attempting to shield him."

"I thought you searched the place for weapons."

"This one came out of his camping gear he must've acquired it from one of his fishing buddies; he didn't stop anywhere to buy one."

"Stall him! If it looks like he's about to shoot knock on the door, phone the house, cut the power, something; I'm gonna pick up the pace. Jhessy, you're riding shotgun," with that Shego took over the controls, jamming the throttle into afterburner, "_no time for subtle now, sounds like spud's gone billy berserk…he pegs that kid he's gettin' a green enema…but then if he pulls the trigger my job's a lot easier..." _The green hero/villain smirked evilly.

Less than a mile from the Custer home Shego shifts her jet to hush and hover mode, exiting her craft only a few doors down the street, "Ok Jhessy, find a park bench, keep your skirt down and your legs crossed."

The JhessyAI giggled, "You know I only open my legs for you."

_"Funny girl." _thought Shego as she hopped lithely from her jet and ran quickly, expertly blending into the shadows of the lamp lit street. The sound of wind sighing through tree branches told the hero her jet had left to hide and stand by. Tapping the throat clasp to her costume activated communications and recording equipment, a camera the size of a cigarette filter adorning the side of her mask, "_damn, three doors down and I can already hear the spud shouting..._I'm on the ground Jonesy."

"Acknowledged."

As she approached the house next door to her objective, the green clad hero noticed a boy standing on the front porch, facing in the direction of the Custer home. Upon closer inspection she recognized him as Arnie's friend Nate and could see tears streaming down his face, "_figure it's a regular evening program spud…the shouting is so loud…he's ranting about the cost of the knee brace …lo-o-ser." _The sound of a pistol shot followed by a scream, which startled the boy on the porch, galvanized the hero into action. Sprinting into the neighbouring yard she called to her support, "Talk to me Jonesy!"

"He's in the living room, he fired a shot into the ceiling and now he's taking aim at the kid."

Shego ran for the back door, "_Hego would probably walk through the wall, the idiot…I can't flame the door…guess I do this old school…" _padding through it quietly she glided quickly to the living room in time to see the man pistol whip his sobbing wife to the floor then take aim at his son. A concussive ball of green energy impacted on the shooter simultaneously with the pull of the trigger; the berserk man getting pinned violently against the wall by fury clad in green and black coincided with an anguished mother screaming her son's name.

_"Dammit, I wasn't fast enough." _Holding the struggling and still belligerent father Shego shouted to the stunned woman holding her son who had an apparent head wound, "Mrs. Custer, listen to me, is Arnie still breathing?" Not getting any coherent response she applies a smaller ball of concussive energy to render the man unconscious. Moving over to the boy she is relieved to discover him still breathing shallowly; about to examine for any bullet entry point Shego hears a familiar clicking sound. Turning, the hero sees Mrs. Custer aiming the pistol at the still form of her husband.

Shego held out her hand, beckoning for the weapon however at the same time prepared to launch a shot of green plasma, "Mrs. Custer…Susan, he's not worth it; if you pull that trigger I take you in next. Do you want your kids to lose both their parents tonight? Drop the gun now and I'll forget this, come keep your son comfortable while I summon help." Dazed, the mother drops the revolver and kneels next to her son to comfort him.

Stepping to the kitchen the teen hero contacts her support, "Did you get all that Jonesy?"

"Yes ma'am, the pistol whip, shooting at his son; the guy will fry," answered the agent with confidence.

"Ok, I'll wrap things up here and you get phase two rolling."

"Yes, ma'am."

Returning to the living room Shego presses a series of numbers into a small cell phone-like device then assists with Arnie.

* * *

At the Middleton Emergency Response Centre one of the operators' reports to his supervisor, "Got a call about shots fired at 1315 Mockingbird Lane…the Custer place."

The middle-aged man huffed wearily, "Ya know I left Go City to get away from shootings; I thought Middleton was supposed to be quiet."

The operator replied, "It's usually a domestic, the caller probably overreacted. Hobble is on tonight and he's dealt with them before…."

"What the hell?" suddenly exclaimed another operator, "I just got the funkiest 9-1-1 call about the same place."

"I didn't hear the phone, what are you talking about?" asked the man in charge.

"I mean the call came straight up on the screen but it's in some strange format," the operator continued by reading the monitor, "It says…REQUIRE POLICE, AMBULANCE / 1315 MOCKINGBIRD LANE / ONE CASUALTY / SHOTS FIRED / SHOOTER DETAINED / AID TO THE CIVIL POWER PROTOCOL / ATTENDING OFFICER…and I'm not sure who, it might be an acronym…S-H-E-G-O. Is that some federal agency?"

The veteran emergency response officer practically tripped over himself dashing to that particular monitor, "W_hat the hell is she doing here in Middleton?_" That's not an acronym, that's a superhero who goes by the name of Shego and she's part of Team Go from Go City. 'Aid to the Civil Power Protocol' means she's resolved something urgent and is requesting civilian emergency assets; send three police units, a rescue unit and a paramedic unit, code three."

* * *

Returning from a pre-season cheer practice, Sherri and Marge complained about their treatment by the team co-captains, Amanda's older sister being especially put out, "I can't believe…well, actually I can believe Connie and Lonnie would kick me off the squad just because I dumped Brick Flagg. I mean, how could I not, the guy was a complete froob; he'll be lucky to graduate inside seven years. You know you didn't have to quit too."

Snorting with derision the other girl countered, "Please, there's no way I'd stay there without my best friend. Besides, as a cheer squad, it's a joke; it's just a social clique for the top of the food chain. Hell, the Lowerton Lemurs kicks their butt with their cheer routines. As for me, the only reason I got to stay was because the senior quarter back had the hots for me."

As the teens turned the corner onto Mockingbird Lane they stopped, surprised by the collection of emergency vehicles further down the street. It took but a moment for them to realize the commotion was at the Custer residence; without a word or even a glance at each other they sprinted to Marge's house.

Seeing a familiar face as she approached her home the Custer girl went straight to Officer Hobble. With trepidation in her voice she asked, "Officer Hobble, what happened?"

"Miss Custer, I'm glad to see you're alright. I'm afraid your father's crossed the line tonight he's been arrested and taken down to the station. Your mother and brother are at the hospital, Arnie got roughed up," explained the peace officer, "If you'd like I can get you a ride to the medical centre to meet up with your family."

The distraught teen's attention was suddenly drawn to the green and black clad masked woman who had been conversing with the officer. The bizarre looking woman spoke up, "Hello Miss Custer, my name is Shego. I'm the one who interrupted your father's less than stellar application of parenting skills. When you get to the medical centre there will be a social worker to help you out and a lawyer will visit you in the morning. I'll be footing the bill till it's all resolved and if you need anything let the worker know."

Staring at the masked woman, her mind suddenly wishing to retreat to a happy place, Marge could only think to say, "Your skin is green."

A shushing, like that of wind blowing through tree branches, accompanied by a gust of air pushing dirt and litter caused everyone to look up the street. To everyone's surprise a futuristic looking fighter jet painted in a green and black dazzle pattern landed; moments later the hero was seen sprinting to the aircraft, leaping onto the wing and dropping herself into the cockpit. As the canopy closed, the jet lifted vertically and sped off. On the way back Shego could not stop scowling, "Jhessy, hook me up with Boyfriend."

"Sure thing sweetie."

Within a moment Agent Jones came on line, "Yes ma'am."

In a baleful tone of voice Shego instructed, "Jonesy, make sure the word gets out to the wrong people in jail how Custer tried to shoot his own eleven year old son." After signing off from Agent Jones the hero realized she had been absentmindedly scratching at an increasingly itchy spot on her leg, the irritation spreading around her body, "D_amn, those pink rats tracked my energy discharge…don't know how they learned time travel, even more, why haven't they tried to bust me?"_

Back at the Custer home, Sherri noted the green hero's extraordinarily long black hair and the fact the face mask was not all that concealing,_ "The Possibles have a superhero for a sitter…heh, well if that's what it takes to handle those kids who am I to say anything."_

Behind the very large house at 1313 Mockingbird Lane, a home where many strange things occurred on a regular basis a bluish-white disk of energy appeared. Two pink creatures, each the size of a medium dog and wearing body armour, disappeared into the disc which closed up afterward.

* * *

A few days after the Custer incident the Possibles, minus the twins who were ensconced in the basement workshop, listened to Shego's post-mission summary. James sat at the head of the dining room table, glowering, unhappy to find out from his wife that their so-called sitter was in fact one of 'those circus folk' he saw on the news. Nonetheless he patiently listened to the young woman's discourse, "So Mr. Custer's in jail and facing charges and the rest of the family are staying with relatives for now. I've called in a few favours; Mrs. Custer is getting a lawyer, there'll be a new place for her and the kids to live when they're ready to move in and a job is waiting for her when she's ready, and I'm chipping in with a family counsellor to help them readjust."

Hesitantly yet with a hopeful tone Kim spoke up, "So Arnie will be okay; he wasn't hurt?"

The hero answered reassuringly, "Not seriously Pumpkin, he managed to dodge his dad just as Shego got there_…dodge the bullet that is…_and all he got was a cut on his forehead falling on the coffee table."

Placing his fists on the table and with brow furrowed Mr. Possible spoke in a disheartened tone, "Although I'm all for putting criminals behind bars and I'm glad things appear better for the Custer kids and their mother; I can't help feeling this was all contrived to make my little Kimmiecub feel less guilty about behaving like a vigilante and almost crippling someone. I'm just waiting for one of you circus folk to make a spectacle of my Kimmiecub by posturing about how heroic she was on the evening news tonight."

Gazing in Kim's direction as James spoke Shego saw the girl wince and close her eyes at the mention of crippling, her father's disappointed tone coming through clearly. Taken by surprise by such a comment the jade-eyed teen looked over at Ann; the senior redhead's blue eyes glared daggers at her spouse.

Ann rose out of her chair and grasped her husband firmly about the arm, yanking him out of his chair she spoke through clenched teeth, "Honey, we need to talk." With that she dragged James to their bedroom whereupon she sat him on the bed before slamming the door shut then turning to face him. Crossing her arms across her chest she glared at her husband, "Are you trying to crush your daughter's spirit? What she did to Arnie was out of love for her best, best friend; she wanted to stop a bully from constantly hurting him and the other kids since no one else appeared able to do so. Police don't arrest ten year olds; parents are the ones who influence these kids' behaviours. Arnie learned from his dad to control people through violence and intimidation; we taught Kimmie a sense of justice, fair play and to be helpful. You ought to remember enough of your youth to know how much of the social interactions, for good or bad, were conducted without adult involvement. It was inevitable that Kim and Arnie would clash; why, because **we taught** our daughter to be a hero and **Arnie's dad taught him** to be a villain. Shego cleaning up the problem at its source was a blessing as far as I'm concerned. You know, the campus at M.I.S.T had a somewhat provincial atmosphere as I recall; however Upperton University was a little more cosmopolitan. I'll tell you something that happened at 'double-U' to Monnie and me; a story that I promised Monnie I wouldn't tell anyone about but I feel applies here. Let me tell you how a judicious application of violence on my part …."

Watching, in amazement, Mrs. Possible drag her husband away Shego's attention was diverted by the sound of sniffling. Looking over she saw the young girl, hands gripping the seat of her chair and her head hanging down, "Kimmie, you gonna be okay?"

Kim tried to contain her sobs, "The only time Mom and Dad go to talk in their bedroom is when they're mad at each other and they're mad at each other because of what I did. And I really disappointed Dad the most, I mean he's always proud when I do my best and I thought I did my best but instead he's disappointed in me."

The raven-haired teen's eyes opened wide with a realization…_Bawd, you boggins Ravens…sure Pumpkin goes to Mom for advice and support but she goes all billy if daddy isn't proud of her…he's the weak link, if he doesn't approve of her becoming a hero she'll never become one…_Moving over to comfort Kim, Jhessa widened her line of thought_…let's see, at this point in the original time stream Team Go was broken up so James wouldn't see anything much in the news and Kimmie became a hero on her own…with me back we've been more prominent and now he seems to have some disdain for costumed heroes which may influence her into not becoming a superhero…and Custer, his old man didn't start going billy-berserk till about a year and a half ago when he got fired after his company was taken over by a GoCorp subsidiary…did the Arnie thing even occur in the original time stream…am I pegging my own plan…._

The Possibles returning to the dining room caught Jhessa's and Kim's attention, the daughter looking hopeful when she saw her parents arm in arm, her mother smiling and her dad wearing a sheepish look while scratching the back of his head. Holding out his hand to his little girl James smiled, "Wanna go out in the back yard and show your old man how to light a fire?" Wiping away the tears from her eyes and smiling with relief the little redhead eagerly grabbed her father's hand and led him out back.

Jhessa looked questioningly at Ann who explained, "It's a healing/bonding ritual that began soon after Kimmie started Pixies and learned to light campfires. James is apologizing so he asked her to show him how to light the fire in the fire pit out back, then they'll sit there in front of the fire, feeding it, until they have things sorted out. Heh, sometimes they stay out there beyond that just to enjoy the quality time."

Looking out towards the back of the house, Jhessa felt envious; listening in for a time to the murmur of conversation she thought she caught the words, "...off the rack..."

* * *

The following evening Jim and Tim were in high spirits, not only were they almost finished with their super-top-secret project they had an unexpected bonus. Jhessa had come over to baby sit and had brought Chinese take-out for supper; on top of that Amanda was sleeping over and she was their best audience, finding their antics as amusing as Kim found them annoying.

In the basement workshop the twins were putting the finishing touches on an identical pair of working model rockets; each with wings tipped with cylindrical pods, a large dorsal fin running the length of the fuselage and a cockpit canopy. A successful test of the self-activating guidance system warranted an exuberant 'hoosha'. Flipping a few switches, Jim prepared to test the engine ignition circuit, "Okay, testing firing circuit…now."

Tim's look of anticipation suddenly turned to one of alarm, "No wait!" Unfortunately the warning was too late and both rockets launched with loud pops. With the engines hissing loudly the small craft circled the basement once before proceeding upstairs leaving two thick trails of grey smoke.

"Tim, why were the rockets fuelled up?"

"Mom was looking for a new coffee can so I cleaned out the J200 container and gave it to her; I had to put the fuel somewhere."

Hearing a loud crash upstairs Jim commented, "Sounds like they made it to the kitchen," almost immediately thereafter something hit the floor hard then a loud bang was followed by the sounding of the smoke alarm. With a look of concern the boy uttered a hesitant, "Hicka-bicka-boo?"

His twin confirmed the sentiment with a firm, "Hoosha," upon which they bee-lined upstairs grabbing fire extinguishers along the way.

* * *

At the end of Kim's bed Amanda lay, curled up, her arms clutching her stomach as she let loose with an unrestrained fit of giggling. Her redheaded cohort, sitting at the other end and rolling her eyes, uttered a more conservative chuckle, "Really Amanda, these are kinda funny, but not that funny."

"Okay," replied the brunette cheerfully, "just one more, please, then I'll stop."

With a small smile the olive-eyed girl began, "Pinky-Joe, are you pondering what I'm pondering?"

"Wuh, I think so, Cerebellum, but where are we going to find a couple of rocket ships to launch ourselves into low orbit?" answered Amanda with another fit of giggling. After calming down somewhat she asked her friend, "How come Ron isn't over?"

"His mom won't let him out of the house till school starts because of his shoulder. How's the sore spot on your face; it's looking a bit better."

"Its fine, Terri says she can cover it with make-up if I want. Speaking of which she wants to give me a makeover tomorrow before starting school."

"Why?"

"She says middle school is where I should start socializing with boys so I have a boyfriend for high school. Terri said she'd give pointers, she's so totally into boys, Sherri not so much for now, she just broke up with her boyfriend. Still, I've got no idea where to start; at least you have Ron, you two are so tight dating is so the next step up."

"Me and Ron; eww, he's my best friend, dating would be way too awkwierd. Besides, I don't have time for boyfriends."

"What about Walter, he's pretty cute and you seem to like him, you two do hang around a lot together."

"I like him enough because he's a good team mate at sports and he isn't a jerk. I like him but I don't like-like him."

The brunette gave her friend a condescending look, "What you need is a big sister to set your head straight. Hey, maybe Jhessa could fill in; you two are pretty close and she's starting college and is absolutely gorgeous. I bet she's gone on a lot of dates; you should get her to help you out."

"I'm not looking for hel…." Kim's rebuttal was cut short by two loud pops from downstairs.

"What was that?" asked a puzzled Amanda.

In a suspicious tone the redhead muttered, "I'm not sure, sounds pretty tweebish though."

A thick hissing sound, getting progressively louder, caused the green-eyed girl to become more alert. Hearing crashing , something going thud upon the floor below, a loud bang and the smoke alarm galvanized the girls. Kim grabbed the extinguisher from the upstairs hallway as she and Amanda ran downstairs.

* * *

The next evening Jhessa found herself back at the Possible's clearing the kitchen table of left over take-out Chinese food. Ann had agreed to let Kim have Amanda sleep over but had found herself tied up in Emerg tending to a patient with severe head trauma. James was already working late with some colleagues preparing a proposal for the Board of Directors regarding an ambitious project that would require a couple of years just to set up then maybe three years to develop_…I wonder if it's the Hephaestus project…we are so gonna need that tech…I'll have my people make sure nothing interferes with it. _

Checking on the twins down in the workshop she noted their intense focus on the finishing touches to a pair of model rocket ships_…heh, like father like sons…_Peeking in on the girls in Kim's room, the teen compared Amanda's carefree and somewhat maniacal giggle against the redhead's more conservative chuckle; she was reminded of her time with Jhessy and turned away with a sigh.

Returning to the kitchen the baby sitter proceeded to the coffee maker, picking up the can of coffee she smirked…_beginning to see where Pumpkin gets her cheekiness…mom's guilty pleasure is playing video games when no one's looking and she stores her coffee in an empty rocket fuel storage can…heh, what's next, brain loaf for supper?_

The sable-tressed teen poured a bag of fresh ground coffee into the can then began preparing a pot of coffee for the Possibles when and if they got home that evening…_they should like this coffee, it's the best blend from South America…_Leaning against the kitchen counter as the coffee percolated Jhessa continued her ruminations…_I'm thinking I dodged the bullet yesterday… gotta be careful with events in the time stream and I don't shiv… figure like mom didn't save the day…damn and I still have no composure around her, I boggins around her some nasty…now I'm checkin' out Kasey…who's next, Pumpkin? gaaggh that's balls nasty, she's so preschool, get that thought out of your head Ravens…think of something else; Drakken, Killigan, __**DNAmy**__, Custer…oh yeah, Jonesy said he's been in protective custody since word managed to get out of what he tried to do to his own son…_with that last thought Shego's eyes narrowed and her mouth curled into a malicious smirk.

Pouring herself a black coffee the sitter turned and strolled to look out the window by the kitchen sink_…this kitchen is so-o-o seventies..._Outside, the sun had set and all that remained was the fading dusk. The sound of two loud pops followed by hissing caught Shego's attention, the mercenary in her identifying the sound as the firing of a pair of rocket propelled grenades…_no way…_The hissing, now very loud, seemed to be behind the teen, from the reflection in the window she saw two projectiles entering the kitchen; a quick flick of the eyes to the floor confirmed she wasn't on a safe-spot. Turning quickly the projectiles were recognized as the rockets the boys had been working on; as one crashed into the coffee maker and the can of coffee…_no-o-o…_she dropped flat on her back to avoid the second one. Being able to look up allowed the hero/villain to see the second rocket arc around towards the opposite end of the kitchen. As it passed over, the young woman destroyed it with a shot of green plasma causing a large bang which was immediately followed by the smoke alarm sounding off.

As the kids stood in the door to the kitchen they watched a smoke smudged Jhessa, bearing nicks and minor cuts from shrapnel, slowly stand up. As the twins attacked the smouldering remains of the rocket and coffee maker with their extinguishers, Kim deadpanned, "There are the rockets you were looking for Pinky-Joe."

Just as dryly the hazel-eyed girl answered, "Narf."

Wetting a cloth the redhead began cleaning off her babysitter, "You're lucky dad wasn't hooking up the fire suppression system till next week, that's when the rest of the parts are supposed to come in."

_Suuuper…_turning to the Tweebs Jhessa gave them a baleful look; absentmindedly scratching a leg with one hand she pointed at the boys with the other, exclaiming, "**You two**; you…spilled…my…coffee… YOU SPILLED MY COFFEE! And you smashed your parent's coffee maker and toasted the five pounds of the most expensive coffee blend on the planet I bought for them." The boys slowly moved behind their sister. "You have one second to get to your room else I let Kimmie loose on you, no witnesses; understand? GO!"

Jim and Tim looked at each other, "Hicka-bicka-boo?" "Hoosha!" then made a quick exit for the upstairs.

* * *

After the evening's fiasco the sitter decided to take up Mrs. Possible's offer of the guest room to sleep in. Having brought no sleepwear and certainly not wishing to sleep either nude or in smoky clothes, however, she mentioned offhandedly her dilemma to Kim. Ever helpful the resourceful girl ran into her parent's room and retrieved one of her mother's nightshirts from the dresser. After getting cleaned up for bed she donned Ann's nightshirt and hopping in bed Jhessa could not help but indulge in a bit of guilty pleasure as she curled her legs up under the hem of the slightly long, for her, shirt and snuggled under the covers. Not having felt this content for a long time, the middle-aged woman in her teen body fell asleep quickly.

_Shego sprinted down the main hallway of her school trying to get to the gymnasium before the Cheer Regionals finished; the cheers, applause and booming music reverberating all around. The teen had promised to be there to watch _her_ lead the cheer squad to victory. As the anxious sprinter rounded a corner and approached the gym doors everything became silent; suddenly overcome with loneliness the young woman realized she had broken her promise and missed the competition. Nonetheless the teen entered the gym, elbowing past the people leaving, making it inside just in time to see a flash of red hair as the door to the locker room closed. She hears a loud sharp whistle and the distraught teen turns to see her self out on the gym floor wearing a green and black cheerleader's outfit, clutching matching pompoms; her long hair done in a high ponytail with bangs almost covering her eyes. With an enthusiastic smile the doppelganger gives thumbs up before skipping jauntily off to the locker room. Turning towards the stands the young woman locks gazes with an East-Asian man wearing a gold-trimmed red caftan, his dark hair done in a topknot. Feeling she knows the man from somewhere Shego decides to ask him his name; raising her arm and opening her mouth…_

…she lets loose with a deep, lung cleansing yawn, her body stretching luxuriously in the Possible's guest bed. Laying there she pondered the dream_…well that one was different…that must be Jhessy in the dream, she always wanted to be a cheerleader but I wouldn't let her because it would ruin our rep as the Supreme One at school…the old guy I know from somewhere but the memory is hazy…._

Looking out the window the jade-eyed teen realizes it is close to dawn; deciding to check on the kids she gets up. Padding along on bare feet Jhessa checks on the boys; seeing they are sleeping quietly she proceeds to Kim's room. Looking inside she sees the girls sleeping in the traditional manner for a sleepover, under a blanket tent on the floor. Approaching the girls she sees them sleeping, each facing the other, Amanda's head tucked neatly under her friend's chin…_there's that little smile on Princess' face again…content much Kimmie? _Reaching under the tent carefully she retrieves the flashlight and turns it off; picking up the tween magazine they were looking at she sees an article about an up and coming singer named Brittina and sighs with a slight feeling of loss and regret…_Jhessy and me would do stuff like this all the time…why am I remembering all this now?_

Suddenly aware of a powerful need for caffeine Jhessa proceeds quietly to the kitchen; although it had been cleaned up, the damage from the rockets was well evident. A bit of hunting on her part the night before had turned up an old style percolator. Filling it up she set it on the stove to boil, losing herself to the sound of the water bubbling rhythmically and the aroma of coffee brewing.

So immersed was the teen in the brewing she did not hear Ann enter the kitchen, jumping back when she heard, "That smells wonderful Jhessa, you're a life saver; I think I'll keep you," and with a mischievous smirk she added, "You know, that shirt looks pretty good on you, even if a little long."

Embarrassed the still groggy young woman explained, "Kimmie got it for me when I mentioned I had no sleepwear."

With a sly look Ann continued, "Did she give you the matching thong?" The raven-haired teen's eyebrows rising to hide behind her bangs caused the redhead to laugh, "You might want to change out of that before James gets home, that's his favourite one." Looking around the kitchen as she approached the sitter the mother commented, "Hmm, looks like Jim and or Tim let a project get a little out of hand last night."

"Yeah, exploding rockets, destroyed coffee maker, smoke alarm…"

"…Jhessa, your face is cut."

"Yeah, Kimmie cleaned them up nice for me."

Taking Jhessa's chin gently with her hand and turning the young woman's head Ann peered closely at the teen's face, the surgeon expressing concern, "Yes she did. But why do the edges of some of the deeper cuts appear to be turning green?"

* * *

The first day of middle school was a mixed bag for the friends from Middleton Elementary. Although the excitement of exploring a new environment, meeting new teachers and making new friends, including welcoming a new girl named Marcella into their circle, there was also serious tension in the air. Word about what happened the week before between Ron, Amanda, Kim and Arnie spread quickly; Arnie's absence explained by dramatic speculations of what Kim had probably done to him. Questions asked of the bully's closest friend, Nate, earned only silence further fuelling the gossip mill. Kim and Bonnie's dislike for each other was well known to their friends; however the barely restrained animosity of the redhead to her acerbic rival that day was unprecedented. The brunette was herself confused by the mutterings of something being her fault.

Things came to a head after school as Kim and Ron were passing Bonnie, with her posse du jour, under a tree, the brunette making a snide comment about the blond's sling, "What happened, loser, fall out of a tree this summer?"

Already tweaked from the day's tension, Kim slammed her adversary into the tree; raising her fist she was pleased to see terror in the teal eyes, "It's your fault what happened to them!" Around her, the angry girl could vaguely hear a frantic chorus of "…no Kim, don't…." Suddenly the green-eyed girl felt someone grab her arm, yanking her forcefully away saying, "Come on KP, I've got something really cool to show you."

Ron managed, by hanging on with both hands, despite his school bag hanging from his good elbow, to drag the furious girl a good block and a half, all the while listening to a string of invective he had never thought her capable of. From her point of view the redhead was surprised at the strength her best friend exhibited dragging her away; even though she began calming down he still kept a solid grip on her fist. He held her hand all the way to his house.

Upon arriving home the two friends went to the kitchen, Ron quickly grabbing one his pain-killers and swallowing it with a glass of juice. Suddenly noticing the sling hanging loose off her friend's shoulder Kim realized he must have used both arms to drag her away from Bonnie, "Oh Ron, your shoulder, I'm so sorry!"

"That's okay KP, let's just wait awhile before our next wrestling match, okay?" smiling at his best friend the blond grabbed some cookies and poured milk into a water bottle, "Let's go to the tree house and enjoy some snackage, I made the cookies yesterday. You'll have to help me up though KP."

Scampering up the tree with the snacks Kim then let down a rope and with her usual strength easily pulled Ron up. With the blond sitting at the end of the old couch the redhead assumed her usual position, laying on her back with her head on her friend's lap.

After eating the two remained quiet for a time, the brown-eyed boy stroking his friend's hair and gently massaging her scalp to relax her.

"Thanks for pulling me away from Bonnie, Ron. Beating the crap out of her probably wouldn't have been a good start to the school year for my rep, you're the best; I'm really sorry about your shoulder too."

"That's okay KP you know I've got your back. Oh, by the way I really do have something cool to show you," reaching into his shoulder bag he pulled out a package and handed it to his friend, "It's from Walter, he saw it at the souvenir shop when his family went to Yellowstone and knew you would like it. He said he spent his whole vacation allowance to buy it for you."

Sitting up Kim took the package and looked at it curiously, "No way, this is from Walter?" The package had 'Souvenir of Yellowstone Park' on the outside; opening it she discovered a soft plush bear with antlers, "Spankin', a 'Bearibou', but why?"

"Duh; KP he's been crushing on you since third grade, don't tell me you never noticed."

"Well I always figured we were friends but personally, I never gave the boyfriend thing any serious thought; why didn't he give me this himself?"

"He was going to give it to you after school but his mother picked him up early, something about a changed dentist appointment. He wanted you to have it today so he asked me to give it to you."

She looked at the Bearibou for several moments, then in a small voice, "His entire vacation allowance, Ron?"

"That's what he said KP."

The redheaded girl held the Bearibou to her chest as she sat back and sighed contentedly, eyes glazed over; inside she felt an unfamiliar yet pleasant little flutter in her stomach. She totally ignored her friend's random discourse as she contemplated the significance of this unusual happening and the strange feelings it engendered.

* * *

No sooner had the word 'summer' been uttered than the teal-eyed girl saw a blur of movement and Possible had her pinned against a tree, knocking the breath out of her and making her eyes see stars for a moment. As her vision cleared she saw a furious Kim with her fist poised to strike. The brunette may have considered herself the redhead's social and intellectual superior however she always knew that her rival could pound her into the dirt without breaking a sweat. She could hear voices asking Kim not to do it; however she was not counting on them holding any sway; for one of the few times in her life Bonnie Rockwaller was terrified. Suddenly, the loser did something useful for a change; he managed to drag his friend away.

A few minutes after, although still shaking, Bonnie assured the other girls she was alright, posturing about all the legal troubles Kim was in for assaulting her. Off to one side she noticed Nate looking at her while shuffling nervously; moving to him she demanded, "What are you staring at loser?"

Almost in deference he answered, "Arnie'd want me to see you was alright."

"Whatev', where is he anyway?"

"Dunno everything but I thinks his dad finally got him good 'cause I saw the police take him away and the ambulance take Arnie and his mom."

Teal eyes widening she demanded, "Tell me everything, start at the beginning."

"It was last week while you was gone to dance camp. Arnie decided to take your advice and call out Possible by beating up Stoppable figurin' she'd lose without teachers to back her up. Anyways, we got hold of Ron and Amanda and got em good."

"That's not what I said, the idiot. I said for him to pick on Stoppable on the first day of school to provoke Possible into taking a swing at him. Then she'd have the bad rep for the rest of middle school. I tried to sink it into his head, Kim doesn't need backup winning fights, she **is** that good; and Possible takes it very personal if someone hurts her best friend."

"Yeah, no kiddin'."

Impatiently and with a hint of desperation Bonnie prompts Nate, "So what's this about an ambulance?"

The brutish looking boy scratched his head, "Well, all I knows is his dad was doin' a lot of yellin' then I heard gunshots, the cops showed up, there was this green lady with long hair…."

The girl suddenly felt her stomach drop in fear, "What do you mean gunshots? Do you know if Arnie's alright?"

"All I knows is he went in an ambulance and I ain't seen him since, 'though after the cops were done his mom came by a few times to pick up stuff."

Bonnie began to worry, "Do you think his mom might be there today?"

Nate shrugged, "Dunno."

Suddenly in a panic the girl dons her backpack and leaves Nate, jumping on her bike and racing for Arnie's house. Pulling into the yard and with faint hope Bonnie knocks on the front door. After several attempts with no answer she sits on the step feeling lost, eyes threatening to shed tears. Drawn to the approach of one of the next door neighbours, a very large, tall man with pale skin wearing large boots, the brunette looks up. She always thought him pretty freaky although he was never less than polite and jovial.

"Hello there Miss; I've seen you before, you're a friend of Arnie's."

"Uh, hi. I sorta heard what happened; I was hoping to catch his mom to see if maybe there was a message for me or something."

"I'm sorry Miss, she came by this morning to tell me movers are coming to empty the house day after tomorrow; I don't think she and the kids are coming back."

In a daze the girl thanked the neighbour and rode her bike to the fitness trail; there she pushed it through the small path to Arnie's hideout. Dropping her bike she sat down at their favourite spot on a rock by a pine tree. Feeling sick to her stomach Bonnie tried to digest what she just heard that afternoon.

_I wish I knew what happened to you, where you are …are you even still alive…you may have been not much better than Stoppable, but you were still mine…yeah, you were a little creepy about women and such but I always thought that was just your dad talking…_looking down she examined her pedicured feet in flat sandals with teal nail polish to match her eyes…_you gave the weirdest compliments, you said I had pretty feet; I actually went with mom to get a mani and pedi then wore sandals for school today…who am I gonna talk to now you're gone…you always listened to how horrible my sisters are to me, you even gave me a hug when I needed one…and you'd tell me how bad your dad would treat your family and show me the bruises…and the new bruises on top of the old ones and I'd get angry for the bruises Possible would add to those…_tears began to trickle slowly down her cheeks as she opened her backpack and with near reverence withdrew two particular items of interest…_I knew you were always sore so I bought pain killers with my allowance and snuck them to you at school and some juice boxes to wash them down with...of course always your__ faves__…_

…_I don't want you to leave…_

Alone within a copse of trees, clutching the small bottle of pills and box of juice to her chest, the little brown-haired girl sobbed quietly.

* * *

**Operational Log **

Wade Load, Overall Commander of The Resistance recording:

_The Supreme One's interaction with a pre-hero Kim Possible is not only curious but confusing as well. The Supreme One's conquests at this point in time are near complete however there is no evidence of Kim's presence since her tween years. We can only hope she is just lost in the time stream and that nothing more serious has happened to her._

**Summary of Neural Scan #8**

_I wish I could interpret the time scale between the peaks of activity of the inherent memories of Jhessa's clone body. Although there are only two more, albeit very large, spikes before the clone memories are done with these spikes of neural activity appear to have a very high emotional quotient. I fear for my niece's mental stability; Kasey and Agent Jones have reported instances when Jhessa seems to be holding small conversations with an imaginary person._

**Yamanouchi**

_Within his study, Se__nsei greeted a blue, translucent humanoid visitor floating before him in the lotus position, "Greetings to you elder cousin and welcome; what news have you?"_

"_And greetings to you younger cousin. Unfortunately the news I bring is dire. The machinations of the entity presuming to call itself the supreme one has disrupted the correct flow of six time streams. In each one the Yono was released and allowed to act according to its nature unimpeded; as such, six universes no longer exist."_

**A/N**

Monica 'Monnie' Rockwaller: She has been a close friend to Ann since high school.

Sherri and Terri: Amanda's twin older sisters; Sherri is the older twin and more down to earth; Terri is gregarious and somewhat flighty in personality.

Bearibou: A Cuddlebuddy cross between a bear and a caribou.

**Shego's pre-flight routine**: 'spool up' – start up the jet engines; 'times seven' - G-force compensator which can handle up to fourteen G's; 'IFCS' - Integrated Flight Control System which allows voice input to control the aircraft; 'battle' - advanced combat features such as point defence lasers and force shield; 'stab ready' – weapons stabilization, allows pilot to aim weapons by turning her head and looking at her target; 'emergency up' - warms up a mundane, secondary flight control system in case of main computer failure; 'drift eliminated'- aircraft navigation computer has aligned itself, it is independent of satellite GPS; 'owl' – nickname for stealth mode; 'hummingbird' – nickname for hover mode; 'script' – pre-programmed flight plan


	5. Her Emerald Radiance

**Can I Be Your Sidekick?**

**Chapter 5**

**Her Emerald Radiance**

**Journal**

_She gets up promptly in the morning at the first buzz of her alarm; I'm quite sure snooze buttons are a foreign concept to her. Facing the day with gas tanks full and batteries fully charged, she takes on the day with gusto; cheerful, focused and always ready to lend a hand, she does not stop until she chooses to. Even when she's rushed she still has a grip on everything within her sphere of influence. And here I thought I had my act together. I swear she has a fusion power reactor in each leg. And Kimmie is no different except she's a little slower out of the sack, her temper is worse and she can't cook._

_However, I sense there is an underlying 'something' to this frenetic pace the Possible women maintain. I don't need them to burn out; I just might assign my Psi-Ops people to keep an eye on them._

* * *

Khmer Yu stood forlornly in the security centre of the last bastion of what had been one of the most powerful factions in a criminal cartel that controlled the bulk of illicit activity in Southeast Asia. This particular site had been chosen for his seat of power because of its strength, having been a series of military bunkers and tunnels dating to the civil war back in the seventies, declared 'surplus' by the corrupt general of the local military district. It was pretty much invulnerable to attacks by rivals or the barely adequate military and law enforcement, the network of tunnels, chambers and bunkers providing ample space for his seat of operations. And up until recently he was at the top of the food chain, second only to the overall boss of the entire cartel. Now he awaited the last push into his compound by strange foreign mercenaries.

Things had begun getting complicated when the higher level political functionaries within his domain, although still taking bribes, began redirecting said funds into social programs for the population; curious. Some time later those same self-indulgent governments developed a social conscience and began cracking down on his operations, his moles slowly being revealed and arrested; enforcers sent to remind said crusaders of the errors of their ways met with, at best, mixed results.

Yu's fortunes really started going downhill after a large and intimidating Chinese business man by the name of Simi Yan announced he was now in charge of the entire cartel through a hostile takeover; the claim backed up by the presentation of the severed heads of the former boss of the cartel and the local provincial governor. The new crime tsar demanded the retrieval of a certain priceless artefact in the form of a jade monkey idol as a gesture of Khmer's loyalty.

Uncharacteristically intimidated, Khmer sent a group of his men to raid an ancient temple hidden away in a remote part of the Cambodian jungle. It seemed strangely devoted to the worship of some monkey god. Exploring the temple was expensive as several men fell to cunning and brutal booby traps; yet in the end they retrieved the desired relic. An ancient looking monk who was apparently minding the temple was also brought back. He called himself Chen, caretaker of the ancient shrine. The ascetic warned the theft of the idol would incur the wrath of the Monkey Master who in turn would direct his warden of the realm, Her Emerald Radiance the Dragon Ninja Xi Gau, to retrieve it. It was foretold a great evil would beset the earth and the Mystical Monkey Master, with his companions, Her Crimson Brilliance and Her Emerald Radiance would sally forth to meet and defeat the darkness; the jade idol was pivotal to the Monkey Master's efforts.

Although sceptical, Khmer Yu was aware of the local legends and figured if the government got wind of it they might use this occurrence as an added excuse to rally even more public support for a concerted crusade against his operations. He decided to secret the idol in his deepest bunker, terminating with extreme prejudice any man involved in the recovery, keeping the old monk alive for leverage just in case, all the while waiting for the return of Simi Yan.

Not long after, all government operations against his facilities stopped abruptly, replaced by what seemed at first to be an international law enforcement agency; Global Justice they were not for this organization worked with efficiency uncharacteristic of that overly bureaucratic entity. Within weeks his lower level endeavours had all but disappeared; drug labs, slave trading, gun runners and countless other assets. It did not appear to be a simple takeover, for every facet of his infrastructure was systematically obliterated instead of captured, his people disappearing without a trace. After a while he began thinking it was the new cartel boss double crossing him, especially since getting hold of him proved fruitless; however, with each loss came rumours of green and black clad 'dragon' soldiers throwing green fire from their hands.

The local monks took the stories and ran with it, telling the grass roots population that the Dragon Ninja had returned to purge the evil operating from the shadows, and that the Monkey Master would soon follow to return peace and prosperity. Khmer Yu was a cynical yet practical man, realizing that as improbable as the stories were to him he was aware of how strongly the people believed and that would be a problem. The stories could not be verified to his satisfaction since none of his of his people seemed to escape these operatives. His best guess being particularly adept mercenaries with lots of money behind them; again, his informants were disappearing without a trace and he was operating practically blind.

The raids on the larger and better fortified facilities came with even more bizarre stories of an actual dragon appearing out of thin air and blasting everything with its green fire; even the subterranean strongholds were no match for the so-called dragon's breath. Again, everything was flattened into useless rubble. Observers claimed to have seen the dragon alight upon the ground only to change into a beautiful woman with glowing green eyes and hands, her body covered in dark green and black scales which seemed impervious to conventional weapons.

The soon to be deposed drug lord glanced down on the desk before him at what could pass for a large mah-jong tile made of jade, inlaid with a five-talon dragon claw of onyx surrounded by an emerald inlay of green flames below which was written in Chinese _~Return the sacred monkey~_.

Sighing, Khmer Yu returned his gaze to the security monitors. As soon as word of dragon disciples reached the ears of the henchmen in his group the ones composed of local thugs vanished leaving him with only the professional mercenaries in his employ. Being more stalwart and practical they figured the dragon to be a stealth aircraft of some sort since, in their professional opinions, actual cloaking was still relegated to science fiction shows; once it showed up they were prepared to down it with shoulder-fired surface-to-air missiles.

Khmer Yu watched the developing battle on his security monitors. His opponent's henchmen were the ones referred to as Dragon Disciples, dressed in green and black body armour with gloves firing very effective and long ranged bolts of green energy. However, even the cameras could discern the gloves to be high tech devices; the soon-to-be-former drug lord was impressed yet still unconvinced as to the supernatural nature of his opponent. That is until he actually saw the dragon itself while observing the raid on his lair.

A shimmering in the air directly in front of one of his cameras caught his attention. Focusing those cameras, he watches what appears to be a long, sinuous Chinese dragon materialize directly in front of his larger bunkers. Although it had the basic body there were major differences. The head was that of a pale skinned woman with flaming green eyes and a fang-filled mouth outlined in black, her raven mane trailing from her head along the spine to the end of her tail. The scales seemed of an odd colouration of dark green and black arrayed in a strange pattern, the sunlight scintillating along them as it flowed its way lithely through the air; the whole anatomy enrobed in lurid, wispy flames of translucent green.

No sooner did it appear than its maw opened wide, as if to swallow the world whole, from which a large emerald green fireball spewed forth; the sphere, speckled within by roiling black bubbles, steadily grew larger, an angry verdant blossom spreading its petals until the screen showed nothing but green. The video feed disappeared the moment a deep, crashing boom was heard followed closely by the ground trembling as the mysterious weapon hammered into his compound. The dragon disappeared as quickly as it appeared, the impact of the weapon obliterating its target.

It took less than a dozen such passes for the dragon to flatten his stronghold, annihilating his external facilities. Not long after, frantic radio reports of the dragon reappearing and landing in the rubble of the compound began coming in. The sporadic attempts to shoot at it proved ineffective and only managed to draw the attention of the Dragon Disciples as dozens of green energy bolts converged on the shooters. Even more incredible were the ensuing reports of the monster disappearing again only to leave behind a dragon woman standing in its place. The crime boss had trouble believing the radio reports since video coverage of that area of his compound was gone however he began puffing more nervously on cigarettes as his people sent messages of the dragon woman, allegedly impervious to small arms fire and dealing out green energy more powerful than those of her troops, leading the assault into the remains of the bunkers and tunnels.

Now, with all escape routes closed off and most of his troops neutralized all he could do was await the inevitable.

The sound of fighting drew the middle-aged man's attention to the entry of the security chamber and tunnel beyond. He could hear shouts, yells and screams of pain among the staccato burps of submachine guns, the loud pop of pistols, the sharp bang of hand grenades and the dull crack and thump of the energy gloves. However, there was now a strong female voice shouting as if giving orders and loud fwhooshing immediately preceding tremor inducing crashing booms. Silence ensued after a few more similar detonations.

The underworld tsar looked about the chamber at the hostages guarded by a squad of his best men, the most important captive being the ancient monk; behind a computer console lay a strongbox containing the jade monkey. A sudden motion from the doorway caught his attention and he beheld a shapely female form in black and green step quickly into the doorway, and to his shock, a volley of green bolts flew from outstretched gloveless hands rather than the usual single burst. Having taken out six of his twelve men she pulled back to the corridor, from where a sibilant voice spoke in Chinese, _~Return the monkey idol. ~_

Grabbing hold of the monk and pointing a pistol to his captive's head Khmer Yu called out in a hoarse voice, _~"One more shot and I start killing hostages, send someone in to negotiate."~_

A few moments later a male voice responds from the corridor, "Okay loser, we're sending someone in to negotiate."

Presently the crime boss perceives the same shapely female form step quickly through the doorway. His eyes widen as he realizes she appears to be the human form of the monstrous creature he had seen earlier. The scales merged seamlessly with pale skin, lightly tinged with green, at the neck, the face being a similar colour, her hair being a luxurious black mane shimmering with green highlights reaching to below her hips. The only item of clothing the drug lord could spy being a thin belt sporting a slightly oversized round buckle, and a small green pouch attached at the left ankle. He had no sooner thought to himself…_"This must be the so-called dragon bitch"…_when she cast her countenance upon the captor. The criminal leader was shocked to see the dragon's face before him, her eyes flaring angrily with a solid emerald green, there being neither pupils nor iris', accompanying a fang-filled feral grin and gloveless, clawed hands wrapped in translucent verdant auras. So distracted, he just barely noticed in time one of her talons quickly point at him. His panicked shot at the scale-covered woman ricocheted off a faint, shimmering orange energy shield; the next colours he saw was the green that enveloped his world and the all encompassing black that ensued….

* * *

**Some weeks earlier**

The young CEO of GoCorp walked hesitantly out of the bedroom suite to her office in the penthouse atop the corporate tower and glared balefully at Jonesy and Kasey, "I am not a hundred per cent on this costume Jonesy; it pinches and the suit is a little too supple for my liking 'cause it clings a little too intimately to certain sensitive parts of my anatomy. And this outfit better breathe well; you do realize how hot and humid Cambodia is. And why did it have to be scales, I hate reptiles…snakes, lizards, alligators…_everything I imagined was under my bed ready to eat me when I was a kid…_ Shego shuddered involuntarily, "And this whole plan sounds too much like something Drakken might've come up with. If I hear the words 'It's simplicity itself…."

Still under his employer's glare the top operative replied, "That hurts ma'am. I concluded that authenticity was paramount; there has to be no doubt as to the veracity of the individual who claims to be the Dragon Ninja. Any clothing could be construed as part of a costume, hiding any discontinuities in the outfit thus raising doubts. Under close scrutiny the outfit's ability to conform to every body contour will enhance its appearance as a skin of scales and a light application of your Team Go makeup will complete the ensemble."

With a smirk Kasey added, "And besides, we took an idea from that shape-shifting girl in that Mutant Men movie and made sure all the naughty bits had a few more scales added to cover them up." Slinking up close to her boss the redhead adds with a sultry voice, "Miss Jhessa, I'm wondering if I could ask a favour; I know Hallowe'en is still a couple of months away but I don't know if I'll be able to get a date."

The costumed woman's eyes widened in surprise, "You want me to be your date?"

"Well not really but we'd sure be a sight with you as the dragon, me as the damsel in distress with Jonesy here as the valiant white knight."

Taken aback the CEO responds, "Umm, I already promised to help the Possibles with their first annual 'Scare for Care' Hallowe'en haunted house."

From behind she heard Jonesy cough discretely as he reflected upon how well the scaly body covering clung to every single physical contour intimately, "Far be it for me to sound prudish ma'am, but your attire leaves maybe less than five per cent to the imagination. Perhaps a modest amount of clothing to cover the bare essentials might be in order if you plan to be around children for a time."

The scaly-skinned woman rolled her eyes, "Doi, I'm supposed to be a college student studying to be a teacher, remember? Anyway, let's focus here."

Shego's secretary held up a small box, "Here are some reptile eye contacts to complete the outfit Miss Jhessa."

The costumed woman smirked, "Got one better for ya." She briefly closed her eyes and upon opening them they glowed a solid emerald, "Not bad, huh?"

Even the normally unflappable Agent Jones appeared impressed, "How did you learn that?"

"Don't know; I woke up really stressed from a bad dream a little while ago and when I looked in the mirror on my dresser my eyes were glowing…anyway, what's the deal in Cambodia?"

Looking at a dossier in his hands, Agent Jones reported, "As you well know, ma'am, it was an amazing coincidence the pacification of Cambodia's government with the Mark III Neurocompliance Chips ran consecutively with the study of the ancient texts of the Mystical Monkey Power; we would not have noticed the acquisition of the monkey idol by Khmer Yu."

Shego's brow furrowed as she began pacing, the padded soles to her outfit silencing her footsteps, "That's what's got me tweaked; in all the previous time streams Monty found and acquired all the idols and in a few of them Kimmie helped retrieve the last one…as happened originally. All Monty worried about was paying off a local drug lord and the provincial governor and once that was done he was left alone. Someone else having an interest in the idols throws everything off; there must be some reason. So who's this Simi Yan joker?"

"All we know is he commandeered the overall cartel in a extremely hostile takeover and renamed it the Yono Consortium about a few months or so ago; since then the focus of the organization is on terrorism," Agent Jones cocked his head in thought for a moment, "Actually, its more like random destruction; there appears to be no pattern to the scope of these acts and apparently he's not showing any fear of neither police nor military responses. Even Brotherson is at a loss concerning Yan's origins and motives other than his showing up about a year ago…"

At the mention of Yono the young woman ceased her pacing her face took on a grim cast. As Jonesy continued his discourse her mind went back to the time stream Monkey Fist awoke the Yono; not only did the creature destroy her empire, it was obliterating the planet.

"…and with the Neurocompliance Chips in place we 'encouraged' all the local governments to launch an offensive against the criminal operations within their jurisdictions. We manipulated the general population with the legends of the Mystical Monkey Master sending his servant, the Dragon Ninja, to rescue a sacred monkey idol and punish the defilers. By inserting our covert ops units as 'Dragon Disciples' to assist the government troops we're reinforcing the veracity of the legends. As it stands now, federal law enforcement and the military are holding positions; only the three biggest compounds controlled by Khmer Yu are left."

The young CEO recovered enough from her funk to acknowledge the conversation, "Yeah, yeah I get it Jonesy; if the people, and more importantly the monks, see the Dragon Ninja rescue the sacred idol and return it to the temple they will more likely be cooperative. So I ask them to guard the idol more diligently against all but Monty and Kimmie. I know how important it is for Monty to find and collect the idols. I know how very important it is for Kimmie to retrieve that last idol for him and it's beyond critical for the buffoon to get the Mystical Monkey Power. I think I know more than anyone else. Jonesy, you were with me during the Lorwardian invasion in the other time stream; no shiv but it was a balls nasty fight back to the Time Monkey. If the Lorwardians came in that time stream they will in this one, it's only a matter of when. And now you're telling me we may be dealing with Yono. We'll need Kimmie and the sidekick more than ever now because together **they…are…that…good**. With the holographic projector on Jhessy to disguise her as a flying dragon and me with my glow and Zorpox belt buckle shield projector we should make a convincing impression when we make an appearance at each takedown."

"Yes ma'am. The psi-ops people assure us playing into the legends will capture the people's imagination; encouraging and supporting them in the removal of undesirable elements from society will instill a sense of accomplishment. The improvements in their standards of living through our standard socio-economic development protocols will be quietly accredited to GoCorp with subtle insinuations of the divine beneficence the Monkey Master thus enhancing the loyalty base."

"So what's gonna be the take away from Yu's operations, Jonesy?"

The top corporate operative of GoCorp flips to another page, "The liquid assets measure up to just north of half a billion including hard currency, precious metals, gems, stocks and bonds. Assuming our manpower estimates of Yu's operations are correct we could come away with a few thousand worker drones; I believe we have more than enough obedience collars and Mark I Neurocompliance chips…."

The agent's discourse ceased as Kasey responded to the buzz of the intercom, "Yes?"

A male voice replied, "Its Dr. Marconi. I have the technical summary and the new prototype as ordered."

The red haired receptionist replied cheerfully with her lilting Irish brogue, "Come on up luv."

Shortly after, the elevator could be heard opening from the reception area below the penthouse office suite. The wide-eyed, stunned expression of the scientist as he reached the top of the spiral staircase and entered the office level was too much for the costumed woman to ignore. Eyes still aglow, she flashed a predatory, fang filled grin and sashayed over to hiss in his ear, "Well hell-llo, doc-tor."

With a gloating laugh, the emerald eyed woman adroitly snatched a slim box about a foot long and a tablet computer from the arms of the man as he collapsed in a faint; walking back to her assistants, she notices Agent Jones' cocked eyebrow and the disapproving glare of her receptionist, "Hey, I'm in charge, I can have some fun once in a while if I want. Ya got a problem take it up with the union…ooo…wait...we don't have a union…too bad."

Placing the box on her desk Shego begins reading data from the tablet, interspersing impatient hand twirling with a mumbled 'blabbedy-blah-blah'. With a smile of anticipation the young woman trades the computer for the box and opens it to reveal a pair of supple black gauntlets made of Kevlar with the back of the hand covered in what appeared to be a fine weave of glass-like fibres. She looked with approval at the shiny new prototype in her hands; it was the latest version of the power glove which mimicked her glow. The first production models were heavy gauntlets which had a tri-lithium power source attached to the top of the glove behind the wrist with the projector at the knuckles. The new version resembled her own gloves right down to the claws. The glass weave was a modified solar powered self perpetuating power core which charged a capacitor woven into the gauntlet above the wrist.

The young CEO addressed her assistants, "I was in one of the cafeterias downstairs having lunch a while back going through brochures on new sunlamps. So anyway, this young intern from Marconi's department sits down across from me and we end up talking lamps and how therapeutic a good toasting was. After a little bit he got this far off look to his face then buggered off."

"Basically, I like the sun; I really get a boost from spending a day catching rays and I mean sun-up to sundown because I don't sunburn and most interestingly my glow is stronger. However, I tend to wear one piece swimsuits because if I wear something like a bikini I tend to…how shall I say…get a little too toasted…." Shego stops talking when she notices Kasey unsuccessfully attempt to stifle a giggle, "Okay, what's up with you?"

Trying to speak coherently through her mirth Kasey explains, more for Agent Jones' benefit, "Oh we're talking so beyond toasted; had I not been with Miss Jhessa the entire time I would've thought her drunk. I might add she gets a little frisky as well."

Watching her boss' eyebrows attempting to migrate to her scalp the office manager continued with a smirk, "In the French Riviera she was wearing a one piece and late in the afternoon managed to pick up this French hairstylist from Paris named François; she loved what he did with her hair…among other things. Another time was in Greece, same thing only the fellow's name was Midas…she apparently also likes men with big hands. Samoa was a little more fun. We played truth or dare the night before a planned beach outing the next day and she accepted a dare…to wear a microkini on the beach the next day." Noticing the sudden glaze to her male compatriot's eyes Kasey quips, "Yes luv, our boss in a microkini…haul your tongue back in, keep your teeth together and try not to drool."

With a smug look the secretary continues, "Well, by early afternoon the lewd comments about the male beach goers was most entertaining… you know, she can make up rhymes off the top of her head…and our employer has a rather broad vocabulary when it comes to assessing eye candy."

A sudden groan from a slowly recovering Dr. Marconi catches Shego's attention prompting a quick bolt of kinetic plasma to knock him out again, "Sorry doc, private talkie here."

Shaking her head Kasey continues, "Anyway, by the late afternoon she begins assessing the women as well and what's worse is she's acting like some giddy high school girl. Then she wants to head to muscle beach to check out the weightlifters, you know, maybe pick up a nice buff guy for the weekend. Anyways, after embarrassing all those two-legged steroid cocktails with her apparently 'au-naturel' power-lifting prowess she leaves with a classic Polynesian beauty no less."

With a glint of mischief in her blue eyes Kasey skips over to her compatriot; with a smirk she puts her hands behind her back. She leans close to the agent's ear and keeping a watch on her employer speaks with a stage whisper, "She had a beautiful smile and an engaging personality…fine black hair in a loose ponytail that hung halfway down her back…about five foot three or four with a slim figure with all the curves in the right places…a little small up top but that didn't seem to bother our boss at all. She was very fit and the way she cheered Miss Jhessa on I tagged her for a cheerleader; it turns out she's a personal trainer and loves putting her clients through their paces until they get it perfect, or so she said."

Kasey turned to her employer, "Needless to say picking up that girl, whose name is Janet by the way, was a breeze after that demonstration…heh, after that demonstration she was just drooling to find out what made you so good. That's the last I saw of you for the rest of the weekend."

Shego was incredulous, "Wait a minute; I admit that weekend is somewhat of a blur, but first of all I don't swing that way and second I'm sure I'd remember that 'cause right now I sure as hell don't…unless I was drunk…but I can't get drunk."

"Well Miss Jhessa it seems to me you like to cross the fence once in a while and that's not the only time...and besides, I have pictures."

"Wait…what?" responded Shego weakly as the glow dissipated from her eyes.

"Between the two of you and copious use of the timer function **you two** topped up a couple of memory cards…I have them in protective custody for now."

With an impish grin the blue-eyed receptionist moves her lips close to the ear of the now dazed man, her words a mere breath, "Imagine me boyo, photo after photo of two athletically toned nubile young women, graceful limbs intertwined in ways one would not think anatomically feasible…long silky hair disheveled and matted to skin drenched in sweat…reveling in the gentle ministrations of hands, lips and tongues…faces expressing in turn lust, pleasure, contentment, bliss…."

Clenching her fists by her side the green woman growls her frustration, "Rrrgh…okay Kasey, I think we get the picture and I think you just broke Jonesy's mind…I don't think we need to hear anymore…"

"…I could stand to hear a little more…" the security operative muttered flatly, his eyes having taken on the thousand yard stare. At that moment it dawned on Agent Jones that thought was the kind that should not have been expressed with an outside voice, the realization pointedly punctuated by the sudden gush of giggles from the redhead compounded by the balefully withering glare of his boss and green glowing hands.

"…or maybe not."

"Okay, **digressing**…time to focus now," said a clearly irritated dragon lady. Turning to her desk she takes the pair of gauntlets and tosses them to her personal assistant, "Put these on."

"Sure, Miss Jhessa but why?"

"Because I need someone who's not a trained and experienced fighter and you're the only one here that qualifies and is conscious at the moment. Tell me how they feel after you put them on."

With a skeptical expression Kasey dons the gauntlets, "Other than a brief tingling at the wrists they're light and very supple."

The former mercenary explained, "The current gloves issued to the special ops guys use a battery and although it packs a punch can only provide discrete kinetic bolts as a ranged weapon and of course it eventually needs recharging. After our conversation on sun lamps that intern I spoke to got the idea of collecting the sun's energy directly without converting it to electricity and storing it in capacitors integrated within the gloves. They've always had a hard time reproducing the energy signature of my green glow, something about it comprising of several different frequencies going down to subatomic levels and other wachyamahooey they said shouldn't even exist naturally. The young guy stumbled upon a solution just from discussing sun lamps."

Turning to her receptionist Shego raises one of her hands, "Kasey, hold your hands up."

As soon as this was done the green woman lights up her hand, a few moments later the new gloves are encompassed within their own glows causing the older woman to jump with a shriek. Grinning broadly the CEO douses her plasma and enjoys the panicked expression on her employee, "Kasey, just think about turning it off."

After the new gloves switched off the costumed woman leads her cohorts to the adjoining exercise room where a specially constructed target was built into one of the walls. Raising one arm she fires off a weak kinetic bolt at the bullseye, "Repeat what I just did Kasey…just think about it a bit." Both assistants were surprised when a similar bolt fired from the new glove on Kasey's hand, although, not surprisingly, the bullseye was missed.

As she lit up her left hand Shego grabs her black ops facilitator's hand with her own and sticks it into the glow.

Jonesy's initial discomfiture turned into confusion.

Holding the man's hand firmly Shego looks at her top agent, "What do you feel?"

Still startled the man answers in awe, "Umm, I thought it would burn; all I feel is really intensely uncomfortable pins and needles and only a little warmth."

Shego explained, "This is the easiest version, I can light up my hands like this with little more thought than I give to walking and maintain it indefinitely. It's basically a kinetic enhancer, it's like having a hundred pound dumbbell in my fist when I punch something. I can make it softer or harder with no more thought than if I chose to walk faster or slower. Launching a bolt is hardly any more difficult but I still have to practice my aim on a regular basis, just like a major league pitcher. There are no incendiary effects, it merely beats through stuff like a big hammer on steroids; it's the easiest setting to fight with since I barely have to think about it."

"Kasey that tingling you felt at the wrists was the new neural interface that Marconi's department modified from a mind control chip only it works in reverse. Its operations are designed to deal only within the operating parameters of the gloves so it kept down the complexity. The old gloves were fired by pressing a trigger and the batteries could only shoot bolts; now the power collector with the capacitor allows the development of an actual plasma glow around the fist giving the troops an advantage in melee. The whole point of the exercise is to have some of the flexibility I have."

Jonesy piped in, "What about the times I've seen you cut stuff with your glow?"

Releasing his hand Shego's plasma shifts from a light green translucent flame-like sphere to a dense, dark green glow surrounding a finger tip, "If the kinetic force came as easily as walking the cutting plasma takes more focus which I can't maintain in a fight; I have to think of creating that effect and of course I can apply it at range. R and D can't replicate it; had I put your hand in that they would be calling you lefty. Marconi says the energy signature isn't just complicated, he swears it's not from this reality. Trying to create the effect with how we generate power, even with the new glove idea, he says is like trying to run a fusion reactor on a cup of kerosene. Follow me, very few have ever seen this before."

Going out to Jhessy's landing pad the scale covered woman turns to face away from the building. Cupping her hands close together she focuses briefly and creates a brightly glowing, neon green sphere of energy. Shego tosses the globe high in the air where it explodes with an intensely bright flash and thundering boom, the blast wave clearly and strongly felt by all on the roof.

Turning to her stunned cohorts the raven-haired woman explains, "No more complicated than walking but now I exert like I'm running a hundred yard sprint with the expected effect, I'll start feeling wiped out if I continue making bombs over a period of time. As you can see the results are spectacular; it detonates on impact or if I think of a delay interval when I create one. But if you leave it the energy will just bleed off gradually and dissipate. I haven't played with it enough to figure out my limits yet."

"Jonesy, you remember us fighting through the Lorwardian lines to get back to the Time Monkey…I didn't have that much trouble taking out the support troops…it was the front line infantry who were just plain tough. They could take a beating from my kinetic glow but I could still take one down with a lot of work…unfortunately there were always more than one around. On the other hand, even though their battle walkers were immune to artillery, missiles and armour piercing rounds made of depleted uranium I could punch through their hide with a glowing fist…my Go Team glow is the only weapon that has shown any effectiveness so far."

"Oh yeah… Kasey? Email Employee Compensation and tell them to add a zero to the paycheques of Marconi's department as a completion bonus; add another zero on top to our good doc for having the good form of giving credit where it's due and three zeros for our intrepid intern…for that matter email Human Resources and have him hired on fulltime...and I want those memory cards."

Walking to her nearby jet Shego gazes at a streamlined pod attached to the belly. Looking up she speaks, "Jhessy?"

"Yeah sis?"

"What's the downlo on the new toy?"

"Other than the fact I feel like a pregnant whale carrying this weapon pod attached to my belly…like couldn't they make it fit my weapons bay?"

"Jhessy," groused Jhessa.

"Composure sis, its aces for the most part; but keeping the capacitors charged for a firing sequence means I can't owl if we want to hammer something; as it is playing dressup will be borderline during an attack. We'll be visible for the time it takes to apply property damage but unless the spuds are quick on the draw we can billy out before they regain composure. And I love the holo projection of me as a dragon; it's so totally coo-oo."

With an evil hiss and flaring eyes Shego responded, "Aces Jhessy, let's go have a blast."

* * *

The offensive against Khmer Yu's remaining facilities went almost flawlessly with casualties among the Dragon Disciples minimal. Shego with Jhessy, provided air support; the new weapon when set at maximum proving effective at smashing its targets, regardless of the hardness or depth of the fixture. A milder burst on a wide spread could neutralize troops in the open for subsequent capture. The raven-haired former mercenary's Dragon Disciples affectionately referring to the green ball of energy as 'The Hammer'. To enhance the drama the acting dragon would descend cloaked whereupon the costumed battle captain would disembark. As the cloaked aircraft lifted vertically the departing cloak would lift with it, exposing Her Emerald Radiance as if she appeared out of thin air. As much as she loved to fly, the green-eyed woman loved to scrap even more, mixing it up alongside her dragon disciples, knowing all too well leading by example only enhanced the image she was trying to present to the locals. Shego wanted to make sure she was at the head of her troops upon cornering her prey….

The scaled leader looked over the destroyed remnants of the last defensive position before Khmer Yu's security control room, casually noting her people affixing obedience collars to the captured henchmen prior to leading them away. Marching ahead, Shego saw the lead squad deploying around the entrance to the last hold-out of the crime boss and approached the team leader, speaking through her fangs with an eager hiss, "Ok spud, now that we're through playing silly bugger, what's the sitch?…_damn, I did not just say that again; no shiv but Princess' tween slang is gonna billy my composure…._"

The Dragon Disciple, dressed in the trademark black and green assault armour turned a ruggedly handsome, tanned face toward his employer, his greenish-blue eyes in a permanent squint from many years in the outdoors; raising a power-gloved hand he pointed with his thumb towards the entrance of the security room, "Just got set up boss, haven't had a chance to count bullet sponges yet."

Nodding, the glowing-eyed woman stepped around her trooper and glanced quickly into the room then stepped back, "Seven on the left and five on the right."

Moving rapidly back into the doorway Shego launches a volley of kinetic bolts into the room. Returning to stand against the wall next to her mercenary she remarked, "Four on the left, two on the right." Turning her head to the doorway she shouts in Chinese, "_~Return the monkey idol~"._

Khmer Yu's response was not surprising, "_~One more shot and I start shooting hostages; send in someone to negotiate~"._

The raven-haired boss glanced casually at her underling, "So Norman, you feel like developing those communication skills of yours?"

"Boss, my negotiating skills stop at shoot first and ask for more ammunition; besides I don't speak Chinese never mind Cambodian."

"He understands English."

Getting a silent stare from his leader the trooper rolls his eyes in exasperation, "Fine, whatever." Turning to the door he yells out, "Okay loser; we're sending someone in to negotiate." Looking back to face the raven-haired woman, he quirks an eyebrow.

With a condescending nod_…yeah, okay…_and a wry smirk Shego powers up her hands and steps smartly into the control room….

* * *

Arm extended, Shego examines her handiwork. Satisfied Khmer Yu was out for the count she glances at the remaining six guards, "~ _Anyone else want to negotiate? ~_" Weapons were immediately discarded.

The Dragon Ninja called the all clear which brought the lead squad of her troopers swarming into the room. Approaching, Norman smirked at his leader's handiwork as he glanced at the unconscious Khmer Yu_…loser_, "So boss, where did you learn your negotiating skills?"

"High school," she replied flatly, "Is the registration team here?"

"Yeah, boss."

"Right, I want collars and Mark One's on all of these spuds except for Yu, he'll probably be more stubborn so he gets a Mark Two. I want collars first then I'll give a motivational speech before the chips are applied for interrogation."

The squad leader's shout brought two unarmoured troopers carrying satchels hustling into the room. They immediately set about the task of affixing red collars to the necks of the hostages and guards; taking out electronic devices to scan and record the bar codes inscribed.

The monk bowing deeply caught her attention_...Grovelling; yes, grovelling is good, we've missed it…_and with a regal gesture indicated he should straighten.

"_~May we speak in private Your Emerald Radiance? ~" _the old man requested.

"_~Shortly. ~"_

About ten minutes later the last of the collars were affixed Shego spoke, "~_Alright everybody, eyes on me. You used to work for Khmer Yu, now you're working for me_.~"

She opens the small cover to the large belt buckle at her waist and presses one of the buttons for about five seconds. The screams of agony are accompanied by the smell of singed flesh. _"~Obedience collars, you'll learn to love them; not that you have a choice.~_ Okay boys, make with the chips."

The screams of agony as the collars were activated startled the venerable cleric as he retrieved the case to examine the jade monkey carefully. The ascetic, bald with a wispy goatee and wearing a red caftan trimmed in gold, smiled slightly as he spoke in English, "Your mastery of Chinese is commendable, however I believe for our discussion you would be more comfortable speaking English; would you not?"

"O-kay," responded Shego cautiously as she leaned back on one leg, placing hands on hips and dimming her eyes back to their normal state.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Chen, Mystical Monkey Monk and Senior Loremaster of the nearby Monkey Temple of the South Winds." Glancing over he observed Shego's people affix what appeared to be a little square stamp upon their foreheads and watched curiously as the pupils of the hostages eyes turned a milky white, the surrounding iris' appearing as dark swirling vortices for a moment before settling to a pale lavender. "First of all, if I may be so bold, to what purpose is that treatment of the hostages and guards?"

"Innocent hostages would most likely be drawn from the local population and aren't likely to be wearing expensive clothing and accessories from the Club Banana flagship store. These were Yu's best lieutenants, accountants, enforcers and chemists. Pretend they're hostages and they have a good chance of getting away to set up again and free their boss somehow." The young woman's explanation was interrupted briefly by a nearby technician scanning a bar code on the collar of one of the captives.

Glancing at the scanner he stated to the captive, "~_You are now identified as soulless worker drone number 1445 and will answer to that designation; do you understand?~"_

With eyes that glowed an eerie lavender the new captive responded in a strangely upbeat tone of voice, "_~I am now soulless worker drone number 1445.~"_

Noticing the questioning look from the monk Shego graced her visage with an evil smirk, "Whether they like it or not, they're under new management."

"Slaves?"

"They're just recently out of work. I'm providing a new job opportunity."

The squad leader shouts, "We're all done here boss, anything else?"

"Just make sure the nerdlingers check out the hard drives in here, Rockwaller."

Looking askance at the woman the elder continued his original discussion, "Since you have been perusing the ancient scrolls of the Mystical Monkey Master please allow me to be quite candid; you are not Her Emerald Radiance, Xi Gau, since she ascended approximately twenty-seven hundred years ago. However, from what I've seen of you recently and over the past number of time stream ventures, I firmly believe you are her descendant. And although she did have a very pale skin, with a hint of green, as you do, she did not have scales and even though she tended to dress provocatively her attire was certainly somewhat more modest by comparison."

"Say what?"

"Some thousands of years ago, a party of companions was sent by The Mystical Monkey King to this realm, through a round glowing white portal, to defend it against a looming evil. Your ancestor, Her Emerald Radiance Xi Gau, was one of them. The others were the Mystical Monkey Master, Te Raun; Her Crimson Brilliance the Princess Qei Pi; their closest friends The Raven Mau Ning, an oracle whose gaze demanded 'tell me everything' and the court wizard Wei Da the Erudite. The last was a gifted healer, a young woman known as The Han. "

The old man continued, "I am one of five dedicated to the protection of all lore pertaining to the Mystical Monkey Master. Four of us each tend to a temple protecting a jade monkey idol. Collectively these edifices are referred to as the Monkey Temples of the Winds each one named for a compass direction; I tend to the Monkey Temple of the South Winds. The fifth, and most secret location, is in Japan where our Sensei and Grand Loremaster guards the secrets of the Lotus Blade."

"Yeah, I seem to remember old hairy hands ranting about some sword."

"Of course you know about retrieving the head and body of the Tempus Simia and joining them in a ceremony in the African Monkey Temple and you have been using it ever since. What you never knew was that we loremasters were made attuned to the Tempus Simia by enchantments cast by Wei Da and Mau Ning. It was their intent that any excursions by any of the Companions be recorded thus we were given the ability of astral projection to observe; although unable to physically intervene we could communicate. Despite our attempts to be unobtrusive our presence has been noticed by you in dreams."

"Yeah, I remember seeing one of you in one of them; so, you're stalking me in my sleep….wait a minute…Tempus Simia is Latin and I thought Monkey Kung Fu came from China; what gives?"

"To answer your first query, we were merely observing for the purposes of keeping a record of time stream travellers. It was The Raven's command; 'Tell me everything'. As for the name of the idol it was bestowed by the Companions themselves for they spoke their own divine language."

Placing the jade monkey idol on a nearby table Chen continues, "Had the original time stream been left undisturbed the dark forces meant to destroy this realm would have arrived piecemeal and uncoordinated and in the end defeated by the Companions. When, in your quest for world domination, you broke up the Companions you denuded this realm of its champions. Whenever you returned to the past, the future you created still existed with its people still living their lives. The dark minions eventually arrived and without the Companions to confront them the realm fell to chaos, destruction and eventual obliteration. Your frequent use of Tempus Simia aggravated the stability of the time streams. To illustrate, this time stream has already become an alternate reality to all your other time streams; of we five loremasters only Sensei should exist at this point. While the Tempus Simia is in use the loremasters record everything the traveller does and what happens around them; new scrolls are then deposited, one copy to each of the five locations. When the head is removed we four senior loremasters are returned to the Astral Plane, dormant, until reassembly of the idol recalls us to our duty. Simi Yan should not be here either for he is a demonic minion of the Yono and was originally defeated by The Han at the battle which imprisoned The Destroyer in his temple; yet he appeared in this time stream simultaneously with your arrival."

"Monkey breath told me dismantling the Time Monkey would prevent others from travelling with other Time Monkeys." The young woman watched the monk spit on the floor in disgust, "I take it from that reaction old hairy hands is full of it. So let's pretend I believe you; what should I be doing to avoid said catastrophe."

"Your endeavours to unite the world under one rule is the right idea, however it was being done for the wrong reasons. The world does not need a general, it needs an empress. Your bloodline is that of the dragon, strong, intelligent, a fierce fighter and excellent general; however, although basically good at heart the dragon is also vain, arrogant, condescending, sarcastic, and if not engaged in a challenging endeavour, prone to hedonistic pursuits. At this point you are engaged in taking over the world, a formidable undertaking you have proven adept at; however, this is a trust and at its completion the newly re-united world must be handed over to the hereditary ruler, Her Crimson Brilliance."

"Are you telling me I got to work my tail off taking over the world only to turn it over to Princess?"

The monk cocked his head in momentary consideration, "Interesting, Xi Gau often referred to Qei Pi in the same tone of voice. The Princess Qei Pi, as she was eventually referred to by the common people, who were merely following your example, was wise in such a way that all could abide by her pronouncements; a kind soul who loved the people and loved by the people; and yet such a fierce warrior even demons despaired to face her in battle. She never thought of herself as royalty; at most she considered herself governess of the lands. As she did for the masses the masses did for her; to see need amongst them vexed her sorely. If any of the people were in distress it seemed against her nature to ignore them. She constantly encouraged the population to improve themselves, strive for perfection and to ever meet a challenge head on. However, you do not necessarily have to set Qei Pi's descendant upon a throne, she need only be an inspiration to others when times become dire."

"What about the Resistance; where do they fit in all this?"

"As you probably know already, the Resistance was ably led by Wei Da's descendant; the young wizard created his own artefacts to travel through time, befitting since it was his own ancestor who crafted Tempus Simia. Currently, the Resistance as you know them is no longer in existence in this future having only recently succumbed to Yono and the Lorwardians. Please note however, there are operatives from other time streams who were sent to temporal locations that were before you began influencing events. All they know is they lost contact with their leaders in the future, not being aware your last venture effectively cut them off. Remember though, they are, of course, still following their original orders and may prove a nuisance at least."

As the aged cleric returned to examining the monkey idol he resumed his discourse, "As you recall, the events of the initial time stream was the first proof of the difficulty in keeping the bloodlines of Qei Pi and Te Raun apart. After the decoy Tempus Simia was destroyed and you retreated to the past, they stayed to help against your simulacrum whom they believed to be you. Alas, the Pretender managed to petition the aid of Yono and without the Han that future failed. It is still debated amongst us whether the key members of that resistance cell were vanquished or maybe survived by escaping into the time stream. The second time stream…."

Shego shuddered involuntarily, "Yeah pops, that's not something I want to see again. Even when we used to fight Kimmie's green eyes were bright and full of spirit. To watch her wreak bloody vengeance for the murder of the buffoon by monkey-breath was creepy. During the time I took over the world we saw nothing of her; suddenly she pops up and starts offing all the villains. The look in her eyes, when she shot her grapple through Drakken's chest, looked to me like black empty pits, as if she'd lost her soul."

The monk nodded, "And she had at that for The Mystical Monkey Master and Her Crimson Brilliance are soul mates. They have a bond with each other that has no equal; each lived only for the other and together they were inseparable. Ron Stoppable's demise ripped her soul in two and crushed her heart leaving her with almost no will to live. After you managed to retreat, Kim Possible lived in her own personal darkness mindless of the love and support of family and friends. When the Lorwardians attacked in that future, she launched herself against them in what amounted to a suicide attack; it did little to slow the inevitable."

"I kinda figured Princess and doofus would get hitched at some point, they seemed that close."

"Being soul mates often can lead to becoming a breeding pair however that is not the exclusive result; being soul mate to one person does not preclude breeding with another. It was understood by each Companion that their bloodlines had to continue so their descendants would rejoin to fight the impending evil as foretold by the Raven Mau Ning the oracle whose relevant descendant will be known to Princess Kimberly as Monique. The only Companion who did not take a mate was Han and the reason for that is unclear, however, Sensei has been investigating the matter."

"Known to all as Han the Healer she was also a strong warrior with an unbridled zest for life; just to be in her presence refreshed the soul. She was the antithesis of Yono the Destroyer. It was noted by all the Companions that Yono's demons tended to shy away from her. According to the young healer, the Mystical Monkey told her in a dream she was a beacon of life, vitality and renewal which was the opposite of what the evil hordes represented. The Han explained the ability to sway demons could be had by any Companion who chose the healing arts as a life's calling as she did."

The lore master's eyes seemed to take on a far away look as he continued to reminisce, "The wizard and the oracle were a unique and complimentary pair: Wei Da knew the what and crafted great magics; Mau Ning was a reader who saw into the truth of things."

"Your third venture involved turning Master Ronald into a being of pure evil with a device called the Attitudinator, your intention being to use him as an ally to counter Princess Kimberly. Unfortunately the conversion went beyond even your expectations and he supplanted you as Supreme One, calling himself Zorpox the Conqueror and relegating you to a minor status. His constant public humiliation of his one time best friend bothered you after a while and you befriended her. I believe you recall his perception of your betrayal of him and the subsequent punishment meted out…."

Casting her eyes to the side as she hugged herself Shego murmured quietly, "I thought I didn't scare but Zorpox terrified me after a time, especially after discovering he found a way to neutralize my power…_I still can't bring myself to go to a public aquarium…."_

"Then you believed having an evil Kim Possible at your side would ensure success thus you employed another artefact referred to as the Reverse Polarizer. During the time it took to conquer the world, in order to assuage your paranoia, you had created an animated male mannequin to court her and at the same time spy for you. She considered you an intimate friend and her discovery of your betrayal incensed her. She destroyed the artificial lover then tried to assassinate you by kicking you into a highly energized tower near your citadel. Playing with her emotions nearly proved your undoing."

Crossing her arms and cocking an eyebrow Shego responded with disbelief, "You're trying to tell me that Kimmie is capable of murdering someone?"

"Indeed; however remember this Kimberly or Kimila as she called herself, was completely evil and apparently did not wish to share dominance of the world. Had it not been for your powers you would have been killed. As it was you barely managed to retrieve the Tempus Simia and after retreating to the past, spent months recuperating."

"Why don't I remember any of that?"

"I do not know, although from my point of view, the event appeared quite traumatic for you."

The raven-haired young woman's eyes grew distant as she tried to fathom the import of the news she was given_…Kimmie tried to kill me…. _"So after that is when I kept them apart?"

"Indeed, instead of trying to eliminate or coerce Stoppable and Possible you merely made sure they never met. That Kimberly was less restrained and more headstrong; lack of judgement on her part resulted in her having a child at fourteen and never becoming a hero. A few years later she met young Stoppable who was an exchange student from Norway; they became attracted to each other, his personality being a calming influence for her and in a few years they wed. Nevertheless, Kimberly's innate personality came through and she organized a resistance to your rule as the Supreme One; although her rebellion created havoc for your empire it was not enough to topple it. On the other hand you were never able to quell the resistance movement either. That Team Possible ventured into the time stream on a mission and were never heard from again. With them gone you became complacent; Monkey Fist, the pretender, managed to successfully petition the aid of Yono the Destroyer and together with the Lowardians who believed they were following the Great Blue, proceeded to destroy not just your empire but the entire world."

"Yeah, that was balls nasty; everywhere they went followed black clouds that suffocated the land, with orange lightning that destroyed anything standing. And what's worse, they were making a beeline to the Time Monkey. I learned my lesson though; I kept Possible and Stoppable apart in the same way on the next trip and kept closer supervision on the minions."

The old monk spread his hands out, "And here you are now, doing what you were destined, indeed quested, to do however you've been doing so for the wrong reasons; have I proven my veracity? Tell me, what kept you from simply killing Princess Kimberly and Master Ronald? Did it have to do with a certain promise you made to yourself?"

Shego's brow furrowed briefly, "Yeah, because Kimmie's mom saved my sister in ER from electrical burns inflicted by Electronique I promised that Princess would never die by my hand or any other means if I could help it."

"Tell me, descendant of Xi Gau, or should I simply call you Shego, disregarding the new body you inhabit, how old are you?"

The young woman looked askance at the old man, "Forty-three."

"His Most Erudite, the Court Wizard Wei Da discovered there is a misperception of time when one uses the Tempus Simia repeatedly. You are indeed one hundred and forty-seven years old; the fact that you aged approximately twenty years with each time stream simply did not register in your mind. I make note that an average person would most likely have died of old age by the end of your fourth time stream. However, the original Companions, although still human, were extremely long-lived individuals, their life-spans stretched over millennia in order to build up this world's civilizations in preparation for the Dark One's next attack."

"Even diluted by thousands of years of mundane human blood the very fibre of your bodies are of greater substance. You are all stronger, faster, more intelligent, insightful, tougher and of course longer lived; although certainly not in terms of millennia. And the bloodlines of the Companions spread out over the many years, their descendants investing every corner of the world; if you ever encounter someone with a strong resemblance to yourself, chances are you are both descended from the same Companion. In fact it was believed the Companions were reuniting about a hundred years ago when the bloodlines of the Master, Qei Pi, Wei Da and Xi Gau intersected in Middleton. Unfortunately, the reunion was not to be for Xi Gau's descendent had, at the time, a predisposition to evil and no powers and regrettable misunderstandings caused the bloodlines to diverge."

Tucking his hands into the voluminous sleeves of his caftan the loremaster continued, "Please allow me to relate a small anecdote from the first time stream venture. At that particular moment you were retreating from a failed attempt to break the spirit of a four year old Kimberly. The older Kimberly attempted to stop you by diving from the top of a tall sign into the temporal vortex the four of you had just stepped down into. The vortex closed and she landed face first onto the pavement."

Shego flinched involuntarily, "Ow."

The monk nodded, "That is precisely what she said after sitting up and rubbing her sore cheek."

After a moment's thought the green-eyed woman questioned the old man, "Wait a minute; if I'm descended from this Xi Gau why was I not born with my powers?"

"Because, in the original battle many years ago Simi Yan, who had petitioned the Destroyer, had just been defeated by the Han and made to follow the path of the Yono forcing him into the dark temple. Xi Gau sacrificed her powers to seal the edifice whereupon the Master turned the Lotus Blade into a mattock, splitting the canyon floor and dropping the evil structure within. The Han then healed the crack in the ground and Wei Da conjured a sandstorm to conceal the site and warded the area with several arcane abjurations. The Master petitioned the Mystical Monkey King to have Xi Gau's powers restored."

The senior loremaster collected his thoughts for a moment, "What I recount here was not seen first hand by any of us loremasters; the ancient texts were scribed by the Oracle herself as told to her by the Master. The Mystical Monkey was agreeable with the Master's request but regretted that the powers of the dragon were beyond his purview. Instead the Master was presented to the Mystical Dragon, Empress Serenity,to whom he repeated his tale. Amused by the valour of one of her children she fashioned a glowstone into the shape of a dragon's egg imbuing it with the original green energy then as a reward for Xi Gau's heroic efforts imparted three other powers as well."

Shego's ears perked up...**_three _**_other powers? _The scale clad woman listened more intently as the old man continued.

"The first was the ability to create numerous simulacra of your self in order to accomplish many tasks at once or to be in more than one place at a time…"

"…Oh no…" muttered the green woman as an unnerving realization began to take shape in her mind_…Kevin and Kyle_.

"…The second was to allow you to compress your body to such an extent that one not versed in such ability would believe you invisible…"

"…Oh please no…" implored Shego, cringing as the realization developed…_Ian._

"…The third granted you super strength…"

"_Henry!_…You mean I was supposed to have them all!" Exclaimed the incredulous ex-villain. "Not that I know how to in any case, but there's no way I would'a shared those powers with those dolts…they don't deserve them!"

"Curious, it had always been a subject of great musings between us loremasters as to why it appeared that way."

Growling in exasperation, Shego's temper explodes, a pair of highly charged kinetic bolts slamming against the far wall of the bunker, creating two rather large gouges. With fists and eyes blazing ferociously she paces the room throwing random blasts at the interior of the room; clawed, energized hands taking out chunks of reinforced concrete. The handful of dragon disciples who ventured to examine the disturbance stopped suddenly when they saw their boss' mood and decided discretion was the healthier choice, retreating smartly into the corridor.

After several minutes of ranting and demolition work the angry woman turned to the loremaster who had been standing quietly during the tantrum, "Gaaggh! Are you trying to tell me but for an accident in timing I would've had all the powers at once? That was the day Henry decided to revoke the 'no girls' policy for the tree house and it was my first time up there." Shego growled, "Rrrrrr! So, had I gone to the movies that day like I had planned I would have all the powers now?"

"You merely needed to be beyond two arms length away; for example the base of the tree would have been sufficient distance if they were high enough in the branches."

The green woman groaned loudly, "We were practically shoulder to shoulder in that tree house; I had Kyle in my lap and Ian was bitching about not having enough room to put his soda down."

After a moment's pause the mercenary leader looked expectantly at the monk, "Is there any way the powers can be transferred?"

Caught by surprise by the concept the old man took several minutes to compose his thoughts, "In all the ancient texts there is nothing written that suggests that such transference has ever been contemplated never mind acted upon. I am personally not even privy to any discussion whether formal or not amongst the Companions. However, I will bring the matter up with Sensei."

Green eyes narrowed in thought.

Caressing the monkey idol with a hand Chen begins speaking, "I must leave presently so the idol can re-attune itself to the temple before the traps can be reset in time for the arrival of Princess Kimberly in a few years so I must touch upon some very important points before I leave."

"Firstly, as I mentioned earlier, the constant flux of the time streams has caught the awareness of the Destroyer even though he is confined within his temple. It is now aware that a descendent of Xi Gau is fulfilling her destiny and it is determined to hinder those efforts. It appears to us that Simi Yan is his proxy; he will attempt to take the turmoil in your mind and use it as leverage to assault it with nightmarish visions bent on shredding your soul with overwhelming despair. Unfortunately the Han is not available and there are no descendents of hers to apply healing and protections to your mind."

"What about Kimmie's mother; she's a surgeon and part of the bloodline. You said a descendant of a Companion who has a career as a doctor can ward off demons."

"A descendant of a Companion practised in the healing arts might be of some help. Suffering nightmares sent by the Dark One is not quite the same as a direct assault by a minion of Yono; this is undocumented territory so by all means investigate the matter."

"Secondly, the Tempus Simia can be destroyed; how events turn out depends on who destroys it. However this only works if the Tempus Simia is assembled; to reassemble the idol you need to repeat the ceremony at the Temple of the Tempus Simia. If Yono succeeds in that task he will take the released energies to unravel the very fabric of the universe and forever end its existence; Sensei is of the opinion Simi Yan is quested to somehow bypass Wei Da's enchantments and release Yono. According to Sensei's 'elder cousin', the Lorwardians are unwitting pawns whose purpose is simply to provide the distraction for the evil quest."

"If a mortal destroys the Tempus Simia then everything returns to what it was. All memories of all time stream events by all concerned will be erased as will anything created or altered. You will no longer be the Supreme One but revert to being a disillusioned hero who turns to villainy."

"The middle option is to leave the head off the idol. Doing so essentially causes the mystical emanations to cease thus stabilizing the time stream. Without the flux in the time stream acting as a beacon the Tempus Simia will be almost impossible for Simi Yan to find without mundane help. In a sense you become a 'smaller target'. This approach may force you into treating Simi Yan as your primary foe so that Princess Kimberly's advancement as a hero proceeds unimpeded."

The monk ceases his discourse and wondering if there is more Shego breaks the silence after a few minutes, "Okay pops, before my headache gets any worse are there any other bits of wisdom to overload my synapses?"

"Princess Kimberly must learn to kill." Replied the Mystical Monkey Monk flatly.

* * *

The mercenary gone corporate gone college girl ruminated as she drove through the suburban streets early on a school day before classes, getting frustrated at the annoying habit of school buses suddenly appearing in front of her to commence their stop and go routine. The weather still had a summery feel to it despite it being close to mid-September, the students she saw walking to school still dressed in light clothing.

The past several weeks had been very busy; the events in Cambodia proving interesting, entertaining and profitable however the plans against the Mathter got put on the back burner because of it. Anne and Kim figuring out she was Shego. Chen's rather foreboding pronouncement that Kimmie learn to kill kept running through her mind; the situation with Custer illustrated the potential difficulties when her attempt at insinuating a modicum of ruthlessness into the young girl fell flat_…and then there's the question of whether I'm gay or straight as an added distraction…I still haven't seen those photos!_ For the time being however, the young woman needed to focus on the task at hand; all first year child development students were assigned a field placement twice a week at a pre-K or kindergarten. As she turned the last corner Shego could not help but laugh out loud, this was not just any pre-K it was Kim's alma mater, ABC Pre-School.

Getting out of her parked car the college student reminisces back to the first time stream venture; there was the big tree where the juvenated trio, Drakken, Monty and Duff tried to beat up the buffoon and got their asses handed to them on a silver platter by a ticked off four year old Kimmie. She remembered watching through binoculars a very pregnant Anne Possible standing by the front entrance…_no shiv but even pregs she was a looker_.

Turning around Shego looks across the street at the parking lot in front of the mattress store where she tangled with the teen Kim. The young woman notices the sign in front of the store…_damn, that sign must be two, two and a half stories…if Chen can be believed Kimmie landed face first on the pavement from the top of the sign…peg me for a spud but if she could survive that she's tougher than I give her credit for…_At that moment the pale skinned teen remembered what the monk said, "…_the_ _very fibre of your bodies are of greater substance…." _The germ of a thought nagged at the back of her mind, however she could not pin it down at the moment._..damn, I gotta start paying more attention to Uncle Percy_.

With about half an hour till the children would arrive, Jhessa checks herself over before entering…_sundress, check…nice shade of green, prim and proper…black, canvas flat shoes, check…book bag with two tons of school crap and miscellaneous odds and ends in it, check…_Reaching up she caresses, almost reverently, a small gold crucifix attached to a fine gold chain around her neck_…good luck charm from momma, check...demure college girl ready…_With a smirkthe young woman proceeds into the building…_okay Ravens, let's do this…let's play teacher. _

Within the lobby Jhessa is assailed by a whole rainbow of familiar smells; modeling clay, wax crayons, glue, freshly washed floor and, surprisingly, that indefinable yet distinct new school year smell, the marble floors still gleaming from the fresh coat of wax applied at the end of the summer. To the left and straight ahead appeared to be offices and resource rooms …_teacher's lounge must be down that way, I smell coffee…I wonder if I can snag a cup before starting, some java would help with the nerves…_, the classrooms were down the corridor to the right with the doors at the end obviously leading to the playground.

Feeling overwhelmingly nostalgic she ambles to a wall covered in class photos. It does not take long before the young woman locates a certain one, Kimmie's pre-K class photo, noting the young redhead sitting on the far left and Stoppable on the right, each waving cheerfully…_this must've been taken before they became friends otherwise they'd be sitting side by side. _As the college student continued idly studying the photo her mind indulged in a flight of whimsy…_I wonder what it would've been like to be her classmate, to have grown up together…_a small, dreamy smile, unbidden, graced her visage.

The raven-haired teen's reverie was broken by the arrival of a smiling woman with grey hair, glasses and a flower print dress, "Hi, you must be Miss Ravens from Lowerton Community College; I'm Edith Sagloski and I'll be your mentor. We still have a few minutes, let's grab some coffee and head to our classroom so I can brief you before the horde arrives."

Suddenly feeling a sense of pride Jhessa points to Kim, "I baby sit her on a regular basis along with her younger twin brothers."

"Really, I'm impressed; we should trade war stories about Kim Possible. I haven't met her brothers though; if they're anything like their sister you must have your hands full. If you can handle them then these kids will be easy-peasy for you."

Later, as the children filter into the classroom, the college student notices an Hispanic boy wearing a cowboy hat approach. After staring at her intently for a few moments, the boy raises his arms towards her in the universal child's request to be picked up. With a welcoming smile Jhessa picks up the tot and, with surprising adeptness, balances him on a hip, "Oh me oh my; who's this little guy?"

Instead of answering, the tot spends the next few minutes carefully scrutinizing the young woman's hair, gently caressing and prodding her skin, tracing the contours of her face with short little fingers and gingerly studying the gold necklace.

Jhessa patiently endures the examination as she speaks with her mentor, "Okay Edith, I know letting the kids get comfortable with you at their own pace can be a good thing, but this is starting to weird me out."

"His name is Zeke and he's pretty quiet but a good kid. I'm totally floored by this, either you've got some secret rapport with children or there's something about you he finds fascinating. He does understand English but he responds well with Spanish; can you speak it?"

"Sure."

"Well, just try something and see how he reacts."

The young woman smiles at Zeke, "Hola mi pequeño vaquero."

The little boy's face brightens immediately with an ear to ear grin as he wraps his arms around Jhessa's neck in a tight hug, "Hola mamá!"

* * *

**A few months later in Drakken's lair**

Becker was new to Drakken's organization, having been on the payroll for only a couple of weeks. In that time he appreciated the fact his uniform was made of Kevlar and wore ballistic eye protection; on his first day he was present when one of the boss' inventions exploded. Although he was still a little sore from having been thrown against the wall , his outfit protected him from the ensuing shrapnel. The harness each henchman wore came in handy, being able to pull two of his injured co-henchmen out of the chamber at the same time. Exploding machinery appeared to be job hazard number one.

Job hazard number two was the boss' lieutenant, a mercenary psycho-bitch with a mean temper and an imagination that ranked high in the sick and wrong category. There was no doubt the woman knew her stuff , she never failed a mission and she had no problem tossing around those unfortunate enough to get on her bad side…and, unfortunately, it seemed she had a lot of bad sides. In short, the boys recognized her as grade-A badass who deserved a lot of space.

For the moment Becker was heading to the lieutenant's quarters with a delivery from Henchco. Arriving at her closed door he knocks discretely.

"WHAT?"

"It's Becker ma'am; I have a package for you from Henchco."

"Fine, bring it in and put it on the table."

Upon entering his gaze was drawn immediately to a corner of the room where a sunlamp shone upon a well muscled, very shapely and very naked female form laying face down upon a massage table, her head turned away from the door and long hair pulled aside so her body could soak up the warmth unimpeded. Mesmerized by the sight the henchman forgot for the nonce to set the delivery upon the table until she spoke.

"Put the package down dufus. Since I'm feeling really mellow right now I'll forego beating the crap out of you for ogling me…so scram before I decide to get cranky."

Without a word and breathing a huge sigh of relief Becker beats a hasty retreat, deciding that he would cherish the image in his mind; yet with a strong sense of self preservation also decided to keep such memories to himself.

With the closing of her door the young woman gets up from her toasting, long hair draping her slim athletic body, and pads languidly to the table to examine the delivery.

Opening the box she finds a pair of gauntlets, one black, one deep yellow, the both made of a supple material incorporating talons at the fingertips and a strange weave of glass-like fibres lacing along the back of the hands. She reads with curiosity a note included in the box; following the directions she dons the gloves and stares at them. A moment later each glove is encased in a flaming gold sphere of energy. The blonde teen gazes with delight at her new toys, smiling an evil smile she breathes out one word to herself, "Freaky."

* * *

**Operational Log**

Umm, hello…is this thing on? Yeah okay, there's the little light. Uh, this is Brick and this is an operating log. It's Labour Day weekend and I found some really hot chicks to party with while I waited for that brainy chick Justine. I think I missed her cause she ain't showed up yet. Maybe I'm doing sumthin wrong cause I can't hold of you guys maybe one of them Rufus dudes can help me figure this out but I ain't seen more than a couple for a while now. Man, I just realized I got a message on this thing…I'll try and get back to ya later after I figure out how to pick up this message…maybe it's Justine. Later.

* * *

_My thanks to all those who've read and special thanks to _**Orchamus, Dalxein, Gaga's little monSTAR, **and** Love Robin **_for leaving a review last chapter. _

**Disclaimer: **_Kim Possible belongs to Disney, only the story is mine, I'm just doing this for fits and giggles._

_The plot bunny for this story was originally conceived by the last scene in_ "The Twin Factor" _with additional inspiration from_ "ASiT" and "Stop Team Go"_._

**AN**

Yeah I know it's been a long time since the last update but RL and other projects intervened. As you may have noticed this is pretty much a Shego chapter, the next one will focus on Shego as well before we get back to Kimmie.

The idea for how eyes react to a mind control chip was inspired by an excellent drawing by Fitzoblong on Deviant Art and used by generous permission; check my profile for the link. In the story there is also a Mark II which is the same only without the effect on the eyes and stronger for those victims of stronger will (I figure Kim and Shego would have eventually overloaded the circuits as their strong wills eventually poked through).

"_Hola mi peque__ñ__o vaquero."_…"Hey there my little cowboy!"


	6. Class Dismissed

Greetings and salutations gentle readers:

Well, I've managed to get an update out in less than a year since the last one. In the previous chapter Shego found out that the Mystical Monkey Power and the Comet Power have a celestial connection; gets a history lesson from a monkey monk and finds out she's a lot older than she looks; sorts out her sexual orientation, starts college for her Child Development Degree and finds out she may be a mother.

My thanks to those who read this story, put it on alert or faved since the last update. To those intrepid readers who reviewed I am thankful for the moral support: HolyRiot11 – I hope this is another chapter that comes out better than my summary. ;d and Orchamus – Get yourself a King-Sized Slurpster® , a Quessorito Combo®, and a comfy chair for this one. ;d

OS

**Can I Be Your Sidekick?**

**Chapter 6**

**Class Dismissed**

* * *

**Journal**

_One hundred and forty-seven years old…damn! And Uncle Percy can only come up with 'interesting' as a comment. Is it age then that's messing with my memories; I mean, how does one forget they're bisexual for crying out loud? I guess that explains me falling for Ann…heh, gee, does that mean I'm robbing the cradle…speaking of which…what if, while grooming her as my sidekick, I fall for Kimmie when she gets older?_

_How do I know whether I'm remembering all my stratagems and mistakes from the other time streams? Am I or will I start getting senile? Something Chen said hinted the Companions…my…ancestors?...were long-lived…Ann does, literally, look half her age, if that and especially physically fit. And then there's this Simi Yan character. Is he a new factor in the equation or have I simply forgotten about him? Are Chen and the other monks also a part of 'my' history or are they new as he suggests?_

_Reports from my spies in Drakken's lair indicate my little freaky stand-in is developing as hoped. She must be up to speed by the time she runs into Princess during the nano-tick caper. I taught 'Freaky' everything I knew at the time I first met Dr. D. Kimmie and her sidekick need to develop at least as well now as they did in the original time stream…if not better. The hard part will convincing Princess on the necessity for world domination; here's hoping I'll have enough time with the next five or six years to accomplish this._

_It's strange what goes through your mind as you're waiting to fall asleep at bedtime. I'm realizing that anyone who's had some sort of significant emotional involvement with me ended up dead: my parents; a close friend in highschool; my one and only boyfriend and of course, Jhessy. Am I some sort of 'Black Widow' when it comes to deep relationships? Should I be worried about Uncle Percy? What about the Possibles? Do I dare let them get close; more importantly how close should I allow Kimmie and by extension Ron get? Should I keep it professional…can I even do that…is it worth the risk?  
_

* * *

As infrequent as his visits to the Middleton Space Centre were when offering his consult on orbital biology experiments, those times he was called in could last weeks. It was with this in mind that Dr. Percival Green bought a condominium townhouse in the new Gustavo Gates community of West Middleton; and it was the address to this abode that a certain college student provided to Lowerton Community College.

Entering the expansive townhouse Shego is assailed by loud music and the smell of takeout wings and pizza; dropping her school bag she finds her uncle in the kitchen struggling with a jar. At her entry Percy turns with a sheepish grin and holds out a large jar of pickles, "I picked up a couple of jars at the Middleton Pickle Works outlet store." With a dramatic roll of the eyes and an exaggerated sigh he continues, "I must have been at this for at least a minute and a half before you came in; would you do the honours please?"

"What is this, 'Operation Gherkin'? Ya know this is usually Henry's job. Opening pickle jars are not in my skill set," sighs Shego impatiently as she pops open the lid. Placing the jar on the counter top she grabs a can of cream soda from the fridge and looks at the take out food with a wry smirk, "I see you went all…out…for supper tonight."

Percy gives his niece a level look and says dryly, "Oh, jocularity…jocularity," then elaborates on the meal, "Yep, the usual, pizza and wings and, as you've already discovered, a case of soda in the fridge…two quarts of chocolate moo juice, bread and butter pickles and, your favourite, a half gallon of chocolate-chip cookie dough ice cream. Half of the wings are honey garlic and the other with suicide hot sauce and the works on the pizza hold the bacon and anchovies. I just got home less than ten minutes ago; I have to run back to the space center to deal with some glitches in the experiment protocols before lift-off to the space station in two weeks."

"Moo juice…and pickles? Unc', your taste buds have seriously jumped the track. Here I thought Cupcake's preference for marshmallows on her hot dogs was whack."

"That's **chocolate **moo-juice if you don't mind, unless you prefer I call it **cocoa** moo like when you were little."

"How about just plain chocolate milk unc'. Besides, who drinks chocolate milk with suicide wings anyway; that is so whack. I'll stick with honey garlic and leave my innards intact, thank you very much." Turning her head Shego finally pays closer notice to the music playing as the two sit to dinner.

"Is that disco?" she asks incredulously, "I thought you were into glam rock and metal."

"Yeah, I'm just tripping back to my days at Upperton University. While I was down at the space centre today I ran into a crush from back in the day; man, she's got to be as old me yet she looks as young as you."

With mild disbelief Shego leans forward, "A little old for prepubescent crushes, are we not? Does this crush have a name, my dear uncle?"

Leaning his head on one hand Percy's eyes take on the thousand yard stare, "Back then she went by Annie Boyington; vibrant red hair, bright blue eyes, great skin, tall willowy body…"

"…Wild guess here; are you referring to Dr. Ann Possible?"

"Uh…yeah…I was talking to James when she showed up to take him out for lunch. You see, I had originally only spoken with him about hiring you and I'd forgotten they got married. Anyway, when she showed up I recognized her on sight and she actually remembered me; I mean, we were acquainted through a couple of biology classes we attended together but we weren't in the same social clique. Of course that never stopped her from being friendly with everybody; everybody felt at ease around her regardless of social status."

"Did you know that by the end of freshman year, Annie had become so popular that if one made a reference to '_The Ann'_ it was understood you were referring to Annie Boyington. One of her favourite pastimes was dancing, spending Saturday nights at the local discos. Annie had a best friend…damn, what was her name…Monnie?…Ronnie?…Bonnie? Anyways, she wasn't as attractive and tended to get eclipsed by Annie; however they were close and both were creatures of uncommon grace, nobody could match them on the dance floor. I would hang out at whatever disco they went to just to watch Annie dance."

Shego raises an eyebrow and drawls sarcastically, "Great, I've got a stalker in my family tree."

The biologist's face suddenly takes on a sober expression, "Never mind that. I wanted to relate to you a little anecdote that came to mind today, about a side of Annie that's seldom seen."

With a cleansing breath Percy continues, his niece paying rapt attention, "This is a story I had to piece together over a few weeks at that time since this kind of stuff tended to get swept under the rug in those days. Annie and…Bonnie?...Monica?…Moni?…were on the football team booster club; as usual Annie endeared herself thoroughly to the team. Anyway, apparently one evening one of the less savoury players, his name was Mick, attempted to have his way with Annie's best friend; she walked in on them and chased him off. He of course vowed he would still get his way and include Annie as well. There were conflicting stories of whether or not a knife was involved but he did have a bad reputation and apparently Annie took him seriously. After taking care of her friend she spent the rest of the evening tracking down the jerk to one of the dorms where he was actually bragging of what he would do to the two women. At this point the story is a bit more reliable because one of my friends was on the team and was there to witness it."

Percy suddenly notices the music had been silenced and sees the remote in his niece's hand, "Brian said some of the guys weren't comfortable with Mick's goings on since they all liked Annie and by extension any friend of hers. Anyway, according to Brian, she stormed in and confronted him; and not just to have a few words…more like essays were spoken. Apparently, Mick suddenly backhanded Annie, called her a bitch and tells her to shut the fuck up. Brian said the rest of the guys were about to 'teach' him manners but she got to him first. That's when they discovered that their little Annie could float like a butterfly and sting like a howitzer, taking him out with a mix of boxing and judo; I mean, no one had a clue she was that strong or fast. In the end she came out with a large bruise on her right cheek and a sprained right wrist from breaking his jaw; as for him, along with the jaw, there were two black eyes, broken nose, missing teeth and dislocated shoulder. As far as Brian and the guys were concerned Annie was the sweetest person around and if you pissed her off enough to make her beat the crap out of you, you deserved what you got."

Pouring another shot of cocoa-moo and passing the glass over to her uncle Shego looks at him closely, "So what happened next?"

"Well, despite the university trying to keep things quiet the rumour mill was in overdrive; word got out about Mick's exploits in assaulting female students as his victims, with Annie's support, gained the courage to speak up. With all that combined with his injury, he lost his football scholarship and expelled on grounds of moral turpitude. Technically Annie should also have been expelled for assault on a fellow student however after hearing the testimony of the football players there, the Dean of Students marked it down as self-defence and suggested to Annie that in the future she should leave such things to campus security instead. Unfortunately for…Moni!"

Suddenly Percy perks his head up like a prairie dog out of his hole, "Yes, that was her name…Monica Penelope…Annie always called her Moni…they were the go-to gals…if something needed doing 'you can bet Annie-Moni can do it'; anyway, everybody recognized Moni's name by reputation but very few could match the name to a face."

Regaining his focus Percy continues albeit more sombrely, "Moni was never the same again after that."

Shego sat back pointing at her uncle with both hands, "Remind me to stay on Ann's good side,' then reflecting for a moment, "especially when her idea of messing with your head involves a scalpel." Then after another moment's reflection she quirks an eyebrow, "You can bet Annie-Moni can do it? Are you kidding me with that?"

Chuckling, Percy asked his niece, "So college girl, how's your first week in school been?"

Folding her arms across her chest the Shego rolls her eyes, "Oi, orientation week was what was to be expected; every prof had the same attitude…my class is the only one that exists and or matters in this reality, all assignments are to be handed in two days before there're due, yadda-yadda. And get this; they all professed to an open door policy yet these same profs have their offices in 'secure' faculty areas; you need an appointment just to get into the department. This week was more interesting; all the first year child development students were given a field placement at an elementary or pre-K to be introduced to working with kids in a school setting," Shego smirked, "and Monday, of all places I get Kimmie's alma mater, ABC Pre-School."

After polishing off a handful of wings she continues, "Anyway, as my teaching mentor Miss Sagloski introduces me to the kids, this little Hispanic boy, Zeke, comes over real quiet like, asks to be picked up and after careful deliberation on his part decides I'm his mother. For the rest of the day he's my shadow; either he has my finger or my skirt. He's no trouble, does what he's told and is quite bright, but it was kinda creepy nonetheless. Then there was one little girl who sat on my lap and asked if she could go to the washroom; I soon as I said sure, she pee'd on my lap. At nap time I sat cross-legged on the floor while Zeke slept curled up in my lap; of course, since I'm sitting on the floor, my hair is spread out behind me. This other little girl crawls under my hair, says my hair is cool and that it makes a neat tent." Shego growls quietly, "Next time I'm wearing my hair in a ponytail. Another one is my apparent ability to speak in rhymes when I talk to the kids; it just blew Sagloski's mind. Actually, it kinda threw me for a loop when she mentioned it since I didn't know I was doing it."

Percy smiles, "Don't you remember; your mother would talk to you kids in rhyme whenever she wanted to either teach or entertain you. Natalie was quite talented dealing with primary grade children and as a substitute teacher she was highly rated by whichever school district you guys were living in at the time."

Sitting upright with her hands stretched out on the table, Shego gives her uncle a rather neutral look, "Huh, really. Well, I found this curious too. The teacher complimented me not only on the green highlights in my hair but on the delicate and attractive application of **green blush** on my cheeks…Uncle Percy, I never put any makeup on my face except for black eye liner and black stain on my lips never mind green blush. I looked in a mirror but I couldn't see it myself. I thought the genetic adjustments to my skin colour were supposed to be stable!" Percy quirks an eyebrow with interest at that, guiding her chin gently left and right with his hand, examining her face as his niece continues, "Anyway, the creepiest part came at the end of the day while we were waiting for the parents; I had Zeke in my arms…."

While holding Zeke in her arms Jhessa is approached by her pre-K mentor, "Miss Ravens, you did a wonderful job today, your rapport with the children was delightful; I'm looking forward to seeing you again and I'm sure I'll be passing on a very favourable update at the end of your placement."

The conversation was suddenly interrupted by a loud squeal. Turning to the doorway the two women watch a young Hispanic girl, about six years of age with long dark hair yelling down the hall, "Papi…Papi…she's back, she's back and she's holding Zeke! Hurry up Zita, ya gotta see!"

A moment later another girl, about ten or eleven, her dark hair closer to shoulder length, enters the room and stops to stare at Jhessa holding her little brother. With a curious inflection to her voice she utters, "Oh wow," turning she instructs her younger sister, "Zoë, go tell Papi to hurry up…quick!"

After a few minutes of awkward silence Zoë returns, dragging her father by the hand; as soon as he sees who's holding his son he stops dead and stares for several moments, seemingly stunned at the image of Jhessa holding his son.

"Oh my," The father expresses in a light Spanish accent as he reaches out gently to take his son all the while never taking his eyes off the young woman. He only just manages to stutter quietly, "Uh…come on Chico, it's…umm…time to go home."

As Jhessa attempts to pass the little boy over to his father, trying to disengage his death-grip on her hand, everybody is stunned by Zeke's ensuing comment, "Ain't Mamá coming home too, Papi?"

To say the situation was awkward would have been a gross understatement; Edith, the first to recover offers a suggestion, "Mr. Flores, why don't I take the children to the next classroom and keep them occupied; perhaps you and Miss Ravens could have a chat to clear things up." Receiving an assenting nod from the two adults the teacher leaves with the children in tow.

As she sits down on one of the low tables used by the tiny students, Jhessa motions Hector to sit as well who in turn sits on the low bench along the wall beneath the chalkboard. After a few more moments of awkward silence Zeke's father pulls a well creased photograph from his wallet and passes it to the young woman.

For her part Jhessa is taken aback at an image of herself that, apart from the darker skin, seemed eerily identical right down to the posture, the long dark tresses, that look in her eyes with the smirk that implied …_I know something about you that you don't and I'm not telling…_and holding a baby in her arms. After a few moments she examines the photo more closely, her eyes widening…_what the hell, she looks like I did in high…_quickly looking up at Hector she asks, "How old am I…she here?"

Sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck Hector barely mutters, "Umm, yeah…uh Sonia was fifteen then and that's Rosita she's holding.

Jhessa quirks an eyebrow.

Standing up Hector begins pacing back and forth in front of the chalkboard, hanging his head down, rubbing the back of his in apparent embarrassment; jamming his hands in pants pockets he explains, "Sonia and I were best friends since we were little. We did everything together, we were always together; our families would joke about who owned which kid we were so much at each others house. We always backed each other up…we'd do anything for each other. At the end of ninth grade, when her boyfriend's family moved away, Sonia kinda got carried away saying goodbye to him. When she told me she was pregnant I went to our parents, of course without telling Sonia cause she'd blow a casket, she did have a temper ya know, and 'confessed' my actions and offered to marry her after high school. I promised to be with her and the baby all through high school. They were disappointed a lot but since they liked me a lot they took my word and I kept mine. Sonia and I got married the summer we graduated. She was really smart with people…she could read them like a book…heh, some she said were like comic books…and she was real smart with fashions and stuff…and she ran her own Club Banana store at the Middleton Mall. When Sonia died her best girl friend, Marita, who was her assistant manager, took over."

As Hector was concluding his explanation Jhessa's mind had gone into overdrive, "_Creepy much…this is like the time stream when I sent the Stoppable's to Norway before Kim and Ron were born…Kimmie got knocked up by her boyfriend Walter Nelson in ninth grade just before he moves away… Stoppable first comes over as an exchange student then later his parents move back from Norway…Ron and Kim hook up, he steps up, accepts her baby as his own and marries Kim after highschool…I gotta figure out how to get hold of Chen and learn more on this converging bloodlines thing he was talking about." _ Jhessa brought herself back into the now as she realized Hector was still talking and heading to the other classroom where the children were…

… "I'm sorry about this; you see Sonia, she was killed in a car crash several months ago and Zeke took it really bad. I mean, like you saw, 'cept for your skin colour you look lots like her; to a four year old I mean its close enough. I'll arrange for Zeke to go to another …"

"…Papi, I'm eleven and she's close enough." interjected Rosita as she exited the other classroom at the sound of her father's voice.

"Zita's right Papi," added Zoë, "You said Mamá would be watching over us from heaven. Maybe God sent this lady to make us feel better."

Zeke's small voice was then heard, "So can she still come home Papi?"

Jhessa looked down at the children, "_Oh man, Kimmie's puppy dog pout ain't got nothing on these kids." _ Looking up she sees Hector shifting his weight from foot to foot uncomfortably, shifting her gaze she sees Edith looking sympathetically in her direction, obviously at a loss. Looking back at the family Jhessa's mind is suddenly overcome by a rather painful flashback…incredible sadness coupled with overwhelming guilt assail her emotions as her mind rushes through a series of long buried memories…_two coffins…her body racked with sobs…flinching at the loud crack of gunshots…a crushed car…._

Eventually, Jhessa realizes Edith had been trying to get her attention, "Sorry, I seem to have zoned out for some reason."

Edith countered, "Zoned out nothing dearie; you look like you're almost in tears."

Hector spoke up quietly and apologetically, "I'm sorry, I guess Zeke's mix up upset you a lot; we should head home now. Come on kids; Zeke, let go of Señorita Ravens' hand and let's go."

Her eyes glistening Jhessa speaks up, her voice catching in her throat, "It's not you. I just suddenly remembered my parents died in a car accident when I was about ten."

There followed a long moment of silence within which Edith covered her mouth as she gasped, Hector cleared his throat lightly as he tried to maintain his composure and tears began rolling down Zoë and Zita's cheeks. After studying Jhessa's face for a few moments, Zeke asks, "Are you sad?"

Trying to maintain her composure, the young woman answers, "Yeah cowboy, I guess I am at that."

With that the little four year old boy beckons Jhessa down to his level and as she kneels in front of him he wraps his arms around her neck to give her a hug….

"Oh my," commented Uncle Percy quietly, "Compassion from a four year old. It doesn't get much more sincere than that."

His niece sat, mute, staring vacantly into space, leaving her food untouched. After several minutes Percy's concern grew, his niece was rarely this quiet, "JJ? You okay? You look kinda out of it."

A moment later she directs emotionless eyes towards her uncle, answering in a dull, almost imperceptible, monotone, "If I hadn't been such a fucking brat that day, they'd still be alive. Thirty seconds…thirty fucking seconds is half a mile at sixty miles an hour. If I hadn't been in one of my stupid funks that day I would've bothered to spare thirty seconds to give Daddy a hug and a kiss before he took Momma to her doctor's appointment. They would've still been half a mile from…there…when…that …happened."

Staring at his niece, it was Dr. Percival Green's turn to sit mute.

* * *

_The green and black fighter jet swooped down below the skyscrapers and although the avenue she followed was fairly wide as far as city streets went, ailerons and rudders flicked back and forth subtly, keeping the agile craft safely down the middle. The raven haired pilot pondered her mission; she knew where her target was yet could not remember who it was nor place the city she was in, _"Why does this place make me think of Tokyo or Hong Kong?"

_ Rounding a large, sweeping left curve she sees the procession she is meant to strike at, doing a fly-by to confirm her target in the middle of the parade. She realizes the plethora of flashing neon signs bordering the avenue would be distracting. Being in 'battle' mode, the force shield around Shego's aircraft was up as well as the point defence lasers. Although proof against shrapnel, small arms and energy weapons, direct hits from cannon fire and those missiles not neutralized by the lasers could still take her down and the long straight avenue made her attack run predictable._

_ Suddenly the collision alarm sounds and she is shocked by the form of a young, vaguely familiar, blond boy hitting the front of her canopy. With an evil smirk she inverts her aircraft and waves her fingers at the boy as she watches him plummet to his death on the street below. To her frustration she hears another alarm in her headset indicating a bogey on her six, "_Shit, since when do I get caught by someone from behind_?" Looking behind Shego sees a long tether attached to the tail of her jet, a girl with red hair hanging on at the end. With a kick to the rudder she creates a whiplash effect sending her passenger smashing into a nearby building; the pilot smiles as the broken body falls to bounce on the street._

_ Swinging back around she opens her weapons bay to drop a fuel-air-explosive on the procession below; the fuel aerosol envelops the target area like a mist, obliterating everything within it as it ignites. With a grin of satisfaction Shego pulls around to launch a salvo of rockets filled with poison gas, the survivors painfully choking to death on their own frothing lung fluids._

_ Landing her jet to inspect her handiwork, Shego's attention is caught by someone apparently scolding her, "JJ, if you can't play nice with your toys, you won't get to play with them at all."_

_ Turning around Shego sees her sister Jhessy with her hair in a high ponytail and teal headband, wearing a drab brown waist length suit jacket and a mini-skirt that showed off an enticing amount of leg. Her arms were around the shoulders of what appeared to be two vaguely familiar teens; a boy with blond hair and a girl with long red hair and as they walk away Jhessy reassures them, "Don't worry guys, Jhessa's is in one of her funks and is just being a brat; you can hang out with me, it'll be a blast!" Then she calls out over her shoulder, _

_ "And Daddy is kinda disappointed in you right now so you better catch him before he leaves so you can say you're sorry for being a brat."_

_ Looking back to where her jet was Shego instead finds herself in the living room of her home and sees her father walking out the front door, "Daddy, wait!"_

_ The tweenaged girl dashes onto the front porch only to see the family car driving away down an empty road in a featureless landscape. Shego is startled by the appearance of large metallic constructs falling out of the sky, impacting the ground around her parents' car as if they were lawn darts, missing by mere inches. _

_ Suddenly a black void appears on the horizon, straddling the road and swallowing up the car. The abrupt sensation of overwhelming despair and terror creeps across her soul, alerting Shego to a malevolence about to pounce on her from behind. Reflexively the tween spins around to face the threat, snarling loudly in defiance…_

…waking Shego from her nightmare. She was not accustomed to experiencing dread in such magnitude. Eyes darting furtively from shadow to shadow in her room, alert for the still perceived threat, she tries to understand why the dark areas seemed to flicker and move of their own volition until she realizes her hands had lit up; her roving vision met the mirror on her dresser and she notices her eyes flaring beyond emerald to an intense, neon green….

* * *

The rest of the week remained weird for the young woman; still well behaved, Zeke made it a point to ask Jhessa each day if she was okay; giving her a hug when he arrived and left; she had the gymnasium dream again and a strange dream of the pre-K children walking on stilts and knocking houses down during recess. Not having any classes Friday, the addled student teacher decided to sort things out and face what began to appear as the awakening of some personal demons.

Her first destination was a certain highway overpass just outside of Go City, where the biggest thing that changed her life, including the comet…o_r was that…egg?…according to Chen..._happened. Upon arrival Shego parks her muscle car under the fairly new overpass, switching off the rumbling engine. Walking towards the abutment she examines the structure of the seven year old bridge; eight years before, the original structure collapsed onto five cars passing underneath, crushing them all and killing the occupants. A marble slab imbedded in the concrete of the abutment listed the names of the victims; listed alphabetically meant her parents were at the bottom. After a time staring at the list the Shego returns to her car to sit on the hood, her feet dangling over the fender. Sitting there, her vision alternates between a blank stare and detailed scrutiny of the bridge structure, her mind barely registering the approach of a state trooper.

Stopping several feet away the veteran patrolman, his hair just beginning to turn grey at the temples, put his hand cautiously upon his pistol, "You okay there miss? Do ya need any help?"

Without turning her head Shego answers flatly, "My parents died here under the old bridge."

Suddenly feeling uncomfortable however with a sense of understanding the officer replies, "I'm real sorry to hear that. Um, technically, you shouldn't be parking here unless it's an emergency. But considering your thoughts, I'll just leave you be; just mind the traffic, okay?" And with that he left.

Near sundown found the muscle car travelling at close to a hundred miles an hour along the interstate to the opposite side of Go City, a Team Go transponder on the dashboard transmitting an IFF signal to local law enforcement so they would let the car pass by unhindered. Sunday afternoon saw Shego drive her red Eliminator through the gates of Victoria Lawn Cemetery…_Probably named after some political potentate's wife…_cruising slowly as she meanders through the narrow driveways until her destination is reached. For a moment Shego takes stock of her surroundings. The sky was clear, the day was warm and there was only the slightest breeze. Any other visitors appeared few and far between.

Grabbing a cooler and satchel from the back seat Shego walks reverently up a slight incline to two grave markers she has not seen since she was ten. Glancing around, her mind's eye replays the scene; the honour guard with their rifles there off to one side; she remembered flinching at each salvo of the rifles. She saw Henry being all stoic as he received the flag from the Air Force officer; for once Ian kept his mouth shut; Kevin and Kyle were restless, but then they were only four and at least did not cry when the rifles fired; and as for herself, she sobbed uncontrollably, believing her parent's death had been her fault. She was also confused and hurt since none of rest of the family had shown up. Her mother's family was huge—eleven sisters and a brother and her dad with two brothers and two sisters—and never mind the innumerable cousins: where were they? Maybe they figured out her parent's death had been her fault and refused to come because of her.

Fingering the small gold crucifix around her neck she looks to the left at her mother's grave stone, _"Natalie Charlotte Josephine Ravens ne__é Gauthier…_then glances at her father's tombstone on the right_…Edgar Allen Ravens, Major, USAF… thank you Daddy for putting your foot down, I don't think I could've lived life as a Charlotte…although Josephine isn't much better for a middle name…still, I didn't mind JJ so much…especially from you…and I miss you guys calling me Princess and Pumpkin..._Shego cocks her head and ponders a moment…_huh." _To the other side of her mother's plot is an empty patch of grass at which Jhessa looks sadly; in the original time stream her sister Jhessy had been buried there.

The young woman begins removing items from the cooler, "I thought we'd have ourselves a little picnic together since it's so nice out, and get reacquainted. Who would have thought a four year old boy would have given me the maturity to come to terms with losing you guys; how about that?"

"I brought your favourite treat Momma, fresh fruit in whipped cream that I whipped myself and champagne imported from France and our favourite pastime, a colouring book with a virgin box of sixty-four crayons. For you Daddy, a six-pack of your favourite beer, take out Chinese food and the schematics to my personal jet." The daughter looks off in the distance as she continues speaking to her parents in a contrite tone,

"So…it's been a while. I guess, from your point of view it's only been about eight years, closer to a hundred and forty for me, and I don't look my age because I've had to transfer into a clone because my original body was getting too old…how about that? I couldn't get myself to come visit you after the funeral because I felt too guilty; then after a few time streams I'd forgotten all about you guys…yeah, more to follow about that concept. I was ferociously guilty because I was too engrossed in having one of my meltdowns to even say good-bye before you drove away; I kept thinking just a hug and a kiss and you'd be alive today. I believed you'd be angry with me and punish me by haunting me or something. Yeah, I know, that is about as rational as my fears of the monster under my bed when I was little. Oh yeah, and about that Daddy, that's why I insisted you stay with me at bedtime till I fell asleep; I was terrified of some monster under my bed. It was so bad I couldn't even leave my bed to go to the bathroom which explains why I sometimes wet the bed."

Having paused during her brief discourse Jhessa resumes emptying the cooler, "Anyway the bridge collapse raised a big stink with the public and the highway department. We became wards of the state because it was claimed you had no will. That was a load of bull; even I knew every serviceman had to complete a will, a copy of which was kept on file; and they couldn't find any extended family, as if."

"Go City Family and Children Services said we'd need to be split up and placed in foster homes so we could have a 'normal' life; the military wanted to put us into Area 51—I've got the documentation to back that up—which reminds me Daddy, you got shafted with that last posting to a training wing, they just wanted you out of a combat unit for 'security concerns'. Of course you know Henry's comet story was rejected out of hand. They still believed our 'condition' was the result of some botched…or successful experimentation with some domestic or foreign agent or agency with suspicious intentions or you'd stolen something that got out of hand…they just couldn't prove anything. After I took over the world the first time I found the documentation where the nerdlingers freaked because our glow had an energy signature that theoretically should not even exist in this universe. Of course that frustrated them more because they weren't able to figure out why and how our powers worked the way they did…however speaking with some old mystical monkey monk in Cambodia…don't look at me like that, I so did…he gave me an explanation that's just as good, if not better, than those provided by our best experts."

"Anyway, some weird organization won out on the custody issue, deciding our powers should be put to use serving the greater good as superheroes. Again, after I took over the world the first time I had no problem finding out who these people were. Global Justice, if you can believe it, set up and funded Team Go and Go City was the proving grounds for the experiment. It seems we were their first attempt at developing a dedicated super-hero team to tackle the latest crop of techno super villains that were emerging. And they wanted so much to keep it secret that they set it up so that any electronic communication in and out of Go City would be intercepted and any mention of Team Go and the super villains they fought would be censored."

"They built the Go Tower…yeah, darn thing looks like it belongs in a Saturday morning cartoon…and the next couple of years were spent in training, indoctrination and evaluating our powers."

Jhessa's tone became bitter, "We had no lives any more; days filled with physical training, unarmed combat, sleep deprivation, drugs, experimental diets, villain recognition profiles. Medical experiments examining physical stamina, tolerance to various toxic substances…almost all were unpleasant, many painful, some almost crippling and a few just south of lethal... they examined our healing ability, what limits our powers had, could they be combined, their effect increased or their range of effect increased. Hell, my first intro to Sex Ed came in a rather embarrassing and traumatic fashion at eleven when I showed the very first signs of puberty; they wanted to examine how my powers affected my reproductive system. I'm quite sure the ethical and moral ramifications of these endeavours were the furthest thing from their minds."

Grimly Jhessa retrieves a can of beer from the cooler, opens it and toasts her parents before taking a swallow, " Oh, don't worry about the drinking and driving issue, none of us can get drunk although some of the stronger chemicals can affect us briefly before our bodies burn them off…unless its something that can kill us outright."

Focusing herself she continues, "By the time I was twelve we were sent out against our first big, bad, evil guys. If it hadn't been for our powers and being an unknown variable to the villains we would've been killed. Because he was the oldest, Henry, within his own little delusion, figured he'd be the team leader of some great crusading crime fighting force; he began committing to memory all the available manuals detailing what, unknown to us at the time, were GJ procedures and protocols…_heh, him and Agent Du would've gotten along famously_. So he figured all we had to do was stand there looking all super-hero-ish and chastise the villains into surrendering to us. Of course Ian never liked being told what to do so he was always difficult to work with. Since I was practically raising the twins they tended to follow my lead with a minimum of fuss."

Taking another swig from her can, Jhessa enjoys a nibble of Chinese food from the take-out container as she stairs blankly across the cemetery, "Within six months I'd become frustrated with our lack of success; we were pretty much a laughing stock and the 'remedial' training from our instructors, meant to correct our deficiencies, was really getting on my nerves. My funks got to be more intense and frequent and my temper shorter; with my green glow the boys and the training staff tended to stay out of my way whenever I fell into one of my meltdowns. To preserve my sanity I 'fired' said training staff and decided to plan our missions myself and I was ruthless in getting the boys to focus. Heh, even Henry didn't like getting slammed by one of my kinetic projectiles so he tended to behave although he still liked to believe he was in charge."

Jhessa's head came up suddenly, "Oh yeah, you guys don't know about Team Go! Well, Henry ended up with super strength, and I'm not exaggerating; he's a freakin' tank. He was really into the secret identity thing so we all had to have heroic names. His team name was Hego…I wonder if he realized there were three other males on the team. Ian chose Mego…no surprise there and he was a shrinker; Kevin and Kyle could replicate themselves into, as yet, uncounted copies and called themselves, appropriately Wego. As for me I was called…wait for it…**She**-go! I was the artillery and unlike the boys I broadened my skill set by finding new ways to use my plasma and learned a more mundane skill set that would make a ninja warrior proud."

Reflecting for a moment, Jhessa continues, "You should've seen me Daddy I was pretty much a SWAT team commander at fourteen. I took your advice to heart; don't just think outside the box, be outside the box and build one around the other guy who's trying to think outside the box. Unfortunately, my concept of max-flex during a mission often clashed with your oldest son's 'Team Leader' delusions along with his penchant for refusing to think outside the box. Anyway, by that time our success ratio had become so impressive that a couple of men in black going by Agents Smith and Smith offered me a position as some sort of black ops type; they were prepared to doctor my birth certificate to make me of legal age. Obviously I declined."

Sighing, she continues, "By then I had become disillusioned with the crime fighting shtick. It was getting repetitive; we'd put them away and somehow they'd get out so we'd have to catch them again. It was becoming a rut. Again, I later found out GJ was arranging the 'escapes' to create more 'training' scenarios."

"Anyway, speaking of fourteen, two significant events happened. One day Uncle Percy shows up out of nowhere. Apparently he had spent the last few years on scientific expedition in the Amazon looking for some fool orchid. I ran into him at a bank heist; he had been one of the hostages. When he realized what happened he went ballistic and took the state to court. He had the documents, including your will, naming him legal guardian plus affidavits from Aunt's Collette, Françoise and Dorothy and Uncles Paul and Art who would've been willing to take us in, freaky powers and all. They didn't know what had happened they just figured our lack of communication was due to some overseas posting." Jhessa smirked, "Heh, he went at them for fraud, child exploitation, and child endangerment, among others."

"Preferring to avoid the risk of getting exposed by some 'crat wanting to cover their own ass, GJ apparently offered Uncle Percy a deal that he was happy with; especially when he had us available to testify to the just barely ethical experiments, indoctrinations, impossible hours and lack of social contact with the outside world."

"Soon after we heard that there had been a change in command, some new 'director'...a Doctor Elizabeth Director actually. Suddenly the boot camp conditions ceased. As a female I was given newly renovated private quarters, away from the boys, in a part of the Go Tower that used to house some of the labs. The experiments stopped and we were to be reintegrated into normal society and not be forced to be on duty twenty-four and seven; although we'd still be living in the Go Tower."

Jhessa grinned, "And, Daddy, we were assigned our own jet, which of course, was called the Go Jet. Obviously I jumped on the chance to learn how to fly and by the time I was seventeen I could fly just about anything just by looking at the controls. You ought to see what I'm flying now; it has an AI which I've named Jhessy; I brought the schematics with me. And Momma; I'm going to college to be a teacher and believe it or not the little ones actually like me. Heh, I even have my own fan section, a little four year old named Zeke."

"So anyway, Henry got a job running a fast food joint, Ian went to college, I was going to start high school and the twins ended up in middle school."

"In the end our lives stabilized somewhat, I hadn't realized how much of a roller coaster we were on Momma until your cousin established a little more peace and security in our minds. He said he promised you guys he would do his best to provide for us and keep us happy. Well, thanks to Uncle Percy's efforts we certainly lacked for nothing, he moderated our superhero activities; as for happiness Henry enjoyed the heroic crusader/secret identity persona, Ian basked in the glory and the twins enjoyed the adventure." Jhessa smirked, "As for me, my mood improved somewhat, to the boys' relief."

"Apparently, Uncle Percy was into some cutting edge cloning processes. When I was fifteen he convinced me to give him some DNA and he'd grow a sister for me. At that time I thought that was so cool. By the time I was seventeen I was ready to bail from the team, because me and a bunch of innocents were almost killed because of Hego pulling a stupid; for me that was the last straw. Then, just as I was packing Percy introduces me to my new clone-sister…I named her Jhessy. Of course we were identical physically however her skills, memory and training only reflected what I knew at fifteen. What was really weird though was her personality which seemed almost opposite to mine, seemingly more upbeat than me; friendly and helpful with others; even flirty if you can believe that and with a dry wit she could deliver with impeccable timing. We got along great…the next few years were very happy times."

"Highschool was pretty much over with for me so it too late to include Jhessy. I brought her up to speed with her education and Team Go training while I went to college. None of the boys seemed to have picked up on things; however, Henry began openly wondering about how I didn't seem to be myself sometimes. As usual Henry misconstrued his observations and assumed I was being corrupted by the lure of evil and thus up to something nefarious."

"Just after I finished college Jhessy's cloning matrix started breaking down and she slowly died of multiple organ failure. I was devastated and despondent - I vowed to never clone myself again; with the revolving villains, corrupt politicians, inept law enforcement and dealing with the boys, losing Jhessy was the last straw and I left. I buried her next to you Momma where the empty plot is."

"There was a lean time of drifting trying to find honest work. I discovered, much to my amazement, no one outside Go City had ever heard of Team Go; it also turned out there weren't too many job opportunities for a green freak with weird powers, emotional baggage and a bad temper. Strangely enough, the villainous community seemed well aware of my pedigree and gave me a wide berth at first. My mind slowly ended up in a bad place; I became seduced by the dark side, and after slowly proving myself, was accepted for my abilities by the villain community and I quickly became the best mercenary thief, enforcer and facilitator; made some good coin too from that."

After indulging in some more snacks, Jhessa continues, "Eventually I signed on with this super-villain whose sole aim was to dominate the world. His schemes were constantly foiled by of all people, a teen cheerleader; of course that's not exactly a great reflection on me since I was supposed to be his muscle among other things. But then, this girl is special…more on her later. Anyway, after a few years I got this opportunity; I came up with my own scheme to take over the world and with the help of a time traveling monkey idol…I am **not **kidding…it worked…six times now going on seven. The problem has been hanging on to it, especially in the face of supernatural and extra-terrestrial mooks. So I decided that I needed to train a new, more effective sidekick and that's where Kimmie, the cheerleader, comes into the picture…."

Late in the afternoon, a groundskeeper passing by was drawn by a curious sight, for sitting on the grass in front of two grave markers was a young woman. In front of one stone was a small bottle of champagne and picnic bowl of fresh fruit in whipped cream; the other had a king-size can of beer and a take-out container of Chinese food. She was busy playing with a colouring book while at the same time puffing on a well worn pipe, the pouch of tobacco beside her on the grass keeping what appeared to be aircraft schematics from blowing away. Duct-taped to the left headstone was a photo of twin girls in their late teens; the young woman sitting on the ground obviously one the two; all the while carrying on with a spirited monologue to the two graves.

Just before leaving at sundown Jhessa turns towards her mother's grave, "Ya know Momma, nothing personal but I wish you'd had Kimmie instead of the twins, or at least after the twins. Really, I do wish Kimmie and I could have grown up together…I would've loved a little sister…like her."

* * *

The following Tuesday after school saw Shego flying her personal jet, to her alma mater, Go City Central High, timing her arrival for the early evening since the school would still be open for extra-curricular activities, tutoring and so on yet not be crowded. As she approaches, cloaked and in hush mode, to the back of the football field she sees there is something very wrong with not only the school but with the surrounding neighbourhood: the whole place looked like a riot zone. Houses around the school were a mix of burned out, boarded up or just generally vandalized. Burned out cars were in evidence up and down the streets; however, more poignant were the burned out paramedic ambulances and a fire truck in the school's front parking lot. Although for the most part the school was still intact, there was copious evidence of extensive vandalism including what appeared to be burned out classrooms.

As she lands her jet at the far end of the sports field Shego is alerted by a warning from Jhessy, "Noxious gas alert big sis."

"So spill already Jhessy."

"Lingering traces of airborne psychotropic agents of levels significant enough to affect mundanes; you'll know they're there but they won't bother you. There is evidence of significant use of riot gas, white phosphorous and hexachlorothane; miscellaneous traces of other fumes consistent with the level and type of property damage in the area as well as weapons fire and explosives."

Having dismounted, Shego carefully scans her surroundings, leaving instructions for her AI, "Okay Jhessy, skirts down and your legs crossed and don't be shy about kicking anybody in the gonads if they get fresh; also, mute the area, I don't want any signals in or out."

"You got it sweetie."

Expecting to meet some of her gang Shego wore her old Mutants colours: black cowboy boots, jeans, jean-jacket, olive green t-shirt and headband and black driving gloves with a green fireball stitched on the back; her hair braided up short and tight. As she approaches the school building, the former gang leader notes with growing trepidation the odd collection of ropes and a few chains with hooks dangling from the crossbars of the football goal posts. Unbeknownst to her, two very surprised and grotesque individuals, having just turned the corner of a maintenance shed, witnessed the apparent materialization from thin air of an attractive woman; a very hurried cell phone call was attempted.

Remembering her gymnasium-dreamscape run was through the corridor leading from the front lobby the alumnus proceeds to the front entranceway. As she walks she recognizes the traces of psychotropic agents in the air, learned from the nuclear, biological and chemical agent experiments she had to endure during her Team Go training; the sense of a 'tingle' at the back of her mind being a dead giveaway. The front parking lot was horrific; her eyes narrowed as she realized some of the burnt out cars contained charred corpses. The fire gutted emergency vehicles were even grimmer to look at; Shego recognized the damage signature of white phosphorous grenades. The bodies of the firefighters around the pumper had been left and desecrated, and each of the five paramedic ambulances contained the burnt corpses of paramedics treating patients_…this is getting beyond sick and wrong…whoever's done this is moving very high on my ass-kicking list…. _All her senses now highly alert Shego mounts the front steps to find the old-style heavy oak front doors had been battered down.

The front lobby and, for as far as she could see down the hallways branching off, were plastered with graffiti and garbage with a fair number of locker doors ripped off their hinges. The display cases on each wall of the lobby had been vandalized; their contents damaged, destroyed or missing. One was especially significant to the young woman and she approaches it slowly; in it, a memorial to students who had been killed by gang violence; the photos had been defaced however the dedication scrolls were still legible.

Shego read the first one, Janet Takata, moved to Go City from Japan a few years before, an honours student who was also student body president; killed in her senior year with five other girls by a pipe bomb in a school washroom. Moving over a few feet she looks at another memorial photo of a boy who had been a freshman with her, yet at over six feet with a five o'clock shadow he looked ten years older, and sporting the unlikely name of Jayne Dobbs. Shego's mind involuntarily drifted into way-back mode….

_"It was late September when the twins and I finally went back to a real school. Ian got into Go City Collegiate; for all I know he's majoring in how to be a professional student with a minor in how to pick up girls. A few weeks ago Henry felt it totally appropriate to disguise his 'real' identity as Hego and assume the guise of a mild mannered fast food employee at Bueno Nacho; when he saw their SOP's for the first time he was hooked. The twins were looking forward to attending a real school for the first time in their lives."_

_ "As for me, I hadn't been to a real school since fifth grade and here I am standing in the front of Go City Central High about to start ninth grade. The place is huge, four stories high and extending almost four blocks left and right and that's not including the gymnasium and the sports field in the back and the 'forty acre' parking lot out front. I don't know how I'll fit in, if at all. I've spent the last two years freak-fighting yet I'm terrified of meeting my peers. Will I be recognized as Shego; will my green skin mark me for a freak…hell, I've got the social skills of a ten year old and I'm four years behind the curve when it comes to pop culture." _

_ "And then it hit me…actually it was a she; we collided in the school lobby. After picking our selves up and apologizing profusely she stops and stares at me at length and I think to myself, "_Oh great, here we go already_." However, her reaction was not what I expected."_

_ "_Oh my God! I love your hair; it's absolutely gorgeous. How did you get it so long? I can't get mine down past my shoulders. No…how do you get the green to move around like that; that is so awesome!'_ she gushed, much to my astonishment. From my point of view I'm looking at a willowy and very pretty brunette Japanese girl who stood a little taller than me; having moved from Japan a few years earlier after having been adopted by a Japanese/American couple: she still had an accent which I found strangely easy on the ears."_

_ "Her name is Janet Takata and she's a senior and the student body president and she happily chooses to take me under her wing. She's smart, pretty, popular and athletic; her entire time at GCCH seemed driven by the desire to help her fellow students in any way she can. To most students and faculty she was simply referred to as '_The Jan'_. She had more energy than three Kimmie's put together and I swear she could probably do laps across the ceiling if she felt like it. She was making my transition to civilian life a lot more pleasant; it was as if she knew all of my doubts and managed to quiet each one. Being around Jan was like a revitalizing breath of fresh air, a soul-soothing experience beyond compare; very few seemed immune to the effect. I was her 'Potential Girl' and because of her I looked forward to going to school every day."_

_ "Then the pipe bomb went off in the girl's washroom. The other five girls were already dead. Jan was still alive so I started first aid, managing a few discrete bursts of plasma to cauterize some of the worst bleeders I could get to. As I worked on her she said to me with barely a breath in her enchanting accent, _'Hey there Potential Girl, the world is yours for the taking. Take good care of it, okay?'_ She didn't make it to the hospital."_

_ "I met my one and only boyfriend, Jayne Dobbs, at the memorial service for the slain girls. He was playing acoustic guitar, providing accompanying music for some singers. I was moping, doing the wallflower thing when he approached me. As much as I had admired his guitar playing I really wasn't in the mood for much company. Ever since I had arrived at Go City Central High I had been hit by a wide variety of cheesy pickup lines by guys trying to get lucky with the 'Orion slave girl'; however, Jayne blindsided me with the best pick up line I'd ever heard…he simply said, _'Hi,'_ then offered a freshly chilled can of soda. We talked about Jan, school, and eventually us. We took the discussion to a local coffee shop where we discovered a mutual taste for dry wit and a finely aged pot of coffee…you know…the kind of coffee that makes you nine feet tall and bullet proof." _

_ "We hooked up and it looked like we were going somewhere with our relationship...oh my god I was so the crushing sheep. We were the perfect odd couple, a six foot three, two hundred and twenty pound fourteen year old boy named Jayne who played linebacker and acoustic guitar dating a green girl with three feet of hair who could punch her way through a concrete wall. Listening to him play guitar was my idea of unwinding and after spending time listening to Jayne play I would feel so unbelievably mellow I could almost have charitable thoughts towards Hego and Mego…almost. I was even planning on moving our relationship to the next level if we were still together at the end of ninth grade. Life seemed good…until two days before Christmas break."_

_ "I watched Jayne get killed in the crossfire of a drive-by shooting from a rival highschool gang in our front parking lot. Amazingly, considering how many bullets he took, not a one touched his guitar…I managed to hang on to it." _

_ "In the space of less than five years I lost my parents, a best girl friend and a boyfriend: I was too emotionally dead to even cry: anger, on the other hand, was no problem…" _

_** "…I'm not even fifteen yet, dammit…if I'm not even allowed any happiness in my life then the world can just fuck off and DIE!" **_

_ "And then the food chain hit. My lack of experience in social situations, quick temper and caustic attitude, along with the hurt of losing Jan and Jayne and the continuing hassles with Team Go had caught up to me. To say it was not easy being green was putting it mildly; despite my attitude I still avoided the use of my glow to, shall we say, chastise those 'all that' types. Most people in Go City had heard of Shego of Team Go but not everyone knew who she was beyond the uniform and her power and I certainly was not going to let on. Of course that did not stop me from getting a little physical in my responses to taunts and insults...okay, a lot physical. That didn't help my case much and my reputation as a psycho bitch grew, further isolating me socially. On the other hand I slowly started getting a following from other bottom feeders on the food chain and from them I started getting an eye opener into the seedier side of high school society."_

_ "I don't know how I was so dense however it turns out the bomb and the drive-by was gang related…_note to self…doi_! It turns out the gang at my school, the RobRoys…yeah, I know, the name just screams losers… were on the losing end of a turf war between the Slicers from Westpark Highschool and the Dicers from Eastwood Secondary. I decided the RobRoys needed some professional consultation. Apparently the usual method for admission into a gang is to get beat into it. After about ten minutes I had pummelled the RobRoys into the ground and promptly congratulated them on their admission into my new gang, the Mutants."_

_ "I trained my people as messengers, scouts, infiltrators, sentries and enforcers-and enjoyed every minute of it; it's amazing how much more effective one can be against your average mook when you know even the basics of unarmed combat; if you can deal with a problem with your hands then you don't need to carry weapons and thus you're not gonna get busted for carrying. With the help of some surveillance equipment and a selection of other 'toys' I acquired, Go City Central High was now firmly under my control by the end of freshman year; the gangs at West Park and Eastwood were under my thumb by the middle of senior year. In the meantime, I'd been dubbed 'The Supreme One'. I'd also found out whom the bomber and the drive-by shooters were; they found out I had no sense of humour about such things; we both found out how hot my plasma can really burn…their bodies would never, ever be found…." _

_ "In the end, although Hego would never have approved or acknowledged my achievement, I had proven, at least to myself that things could run smoothly if only I were left in charge, kind of a testing ground for world domination. By grad, in all three highschools, there were no more shootings or bombings, no drugs, no hazing or 'unauthorized' violence."_

Suddenly, an abject fear that is instilled in childhood causes Shego to involuntarily tense up when she hears behind her….

"Young lady, where is your hall pass!?"

Turning Shego is astonished to see Mr. Phong the school vice principal, a small rather pear-shaped Oriental man looking somewhere between fifty and three hundred years old. What is more distressing, however, although he is dressed in his usual jacket and tie, his clothing is torn and dirty and he looked as if he had not seen a bath in a long time. He also looked as if he had taken a beating or two, the obvious, twitchy behaviour and the crazed look in his eyes gave cause for Shego to be concerned.

With a questioning glance Shego waves her hand encompassing the man and the lobby in one gesture.

Focusing more closely Mr. Phong responds, "Oh, Miss Ravens, it's you. You're on the honour roll, of course you're exempt from requiring a hall pass. But, as you can see, your legacy as the Supreme One didn't last long once you left. West Park and Eastwood are in similar states."

Eyes narrowed, Shego leans back on one leg and crosses her arms over her chest, "Explain."

The school administrator glances nervously about, "Over the summer, after you graduated a new gang came from out of nowhere…The Servants of Yono. They didn't hail from any highschool nor were they a street gang anybody had ever heard of…more like a cult, if you ask me."

Shego raised an eyebrow, her interest piqued…_Yono isn't supposed to make an appearance for at least twenty-five or thirty years and that only after Monkey Fist finds him…_ "Do tell. Who's the leader; I know most of the big bad uglies in this town."

"No one does. I've seen him around here of course; the six-foot-thirteen, four foot wide kind of guy. He's seems Chinese, judging by some of the expressions I've heard from him, bald with some orange and yellow round tattoo on the back of his right hand. He calls himself…damn what is it…Simi Yan."

"Anyway, this summer he made his move; it wasn't just a turf war, it was gangland genocide. To this date, at least as far as the authorities know, there are no known members of the Slicers, Dicers or Mutants nor their families believed left alive and the collateral damage and civilian casualties were unprecedented. They weren't afraid to swarm police cars and even the National Guard units lost whole squads until they took things seriously. The city tried to get hold of Team Go, but apparently they were already engaged with a super villain…that was either bad timing for us or good intuition on his part. By the time the National Guard showed up in force they had disappeared into the woodwork; I'm surprised you never heard about it."

Shego's mind wandered back to that night she got fried by Electronique and what Anne told her later…'_There was a gang war between some high schools that night and ER was swamped, so of course I pitched in.'…_Bringing her mind back in the moment the young woman looks directly at the vice-principal, "I discovered something interesting about Go City once I left. It seems whatever happens here stays here. Did you know that outside this city no one has even heard of Team Go, never mind Aviarius, the Mathter or Electronique?"

Mr. Phong quirked an eyebrow, "Huh, is that so? Well anyway, the Servants are somehow motivated to prevent the three schools and the surrounding neighbourhoods from being repaired and brought up and running. They attack any repairs crews, even if escorted by law enforcement." Glancing about furtively he continues, "That reminds me, we ought to leave now, some of the Yono followers are gathering here tonight."

"Thanks for the heads-ups but I'm here to resolve some demons and it looks like I might get a two for one deal. Wait a minute; why are you staying?" At that moment the tingling at the back of Shego's mind gets stronger and she sees a change in the vice-principal's demeanour, his eyes taking on a more crazed, panicked look as he whips his head around as if watching for something.

Mr. Phong stares intently at the young woman in front of him and mutters, "I'm the vice-principal and I'm here to supervise extra-curricular activities this evening." Then with a pleading look, "Please do something Shego, but remember…stay in the light…stay out of the fog…beware the black." With that he picks up a broken clipboard off the floor and scurries into the nurse's office.

Warily Shego proceeds down the hall, her boots tapping clearly on the floor. Along with the expected structural damage and the lingering smell typical of torched buildings she spies spent bullet casings here and there along with the usual detritus of sacked classrooms and lockers. Adding to the grimness are the all too frequent large bloodstains on walls and floors. Turning the corner to the gym she stops suddenly to stare at the doors. Painted upon them is a large orange circle bordered in a deep yellow; in the middle, also in yellow, is the silhouette of a monkey in the lotus position apparently floating over a pair of stylized mists or perhaps lightning bolts…the mark of the Yono. Sighing, Shego enters the gym.

Strolling to the centre of the basketball court, she is immediately aware of her mistake shaking her head in disgust, _"Damn, Ravens…never pegged yourself for a spud…figure I haven't had that dream enough I couldn't realize the dream-gym was not this one!"_

With that sudden revelation out of the way Shego's decides to give the gym closer scrutiny. Looking at the floor at centre court she sees what has become a fire pit that had seen frequent use…_I'm sure hoping those bones are from a large rack of beef ribs…. _The stench of feces and rotting garbage permeating the gym emanated from beneath the bleachers as Shego ambled towards one of the basketball nets. Along the way she picks up a canister that is slightly bigger than a soda can and recognizes it immediately, "_Well there's the source of the hexachlorothane…smoke canisters…these come in different colours…now what about the Willy Pete?" _ Arriving at the first net Shego discovers a collection of ropes and manacles hanging from the crossbars, the hoop torn off; on the floor underneath is a large, dark, dried up pool of what might have been blood. Her face takes on a grim countenance, "_This is really beginning to damage my calm." _Suddenly her ruminations are interrupted by a widespread hissing sound throughout the gymnasium.

Looking around Shego sees smoke billowing into the gym through every exit and even from beneath the bleachers; the tingle at the back of her mind slowly developing into a headache…_yep, hexachlorothane smoke grenades…I recognize the smell…aww man, that stuff gets right into your system...I'll be farting that smell for the next two days…this must be the fog Phong was talking about…huh, not as impressive as the real stuff, where's the lightning…and now more of that other stuff that's supposed to mess with my mind…I can think of better ways to get a hangover. _ Then the chant started...

"Simi Yan man kiala Yono…ha hua qin zhufan Yono…"

Continuing their chant, over a dozen or so gang members emerge from the smoke screen, with more in the background visible only as silhouettes, meandering to surround Shego. All had mutilated faces with makeup added to appear as monkeys, most having filed their teeth, with a few having pulled their lips back with face studs to mimic a ferocious simian; a few had crampons attached to heavy boots, each step eliciting a harsh grinding as their points gouge the wooden floor of the court. Although obviously concealed, cutlery would most likely be available; she saw at least one lead pipe, a motorcycle chain and would not be surprised if there were a concealed pistol.

Incensed at what happened to her turf and peeps, Shego allows her anger to guide her judgement; she wants to take it up close and personal with no plasma until she actually needs to use it. She settles on her battle strategy: bend, fold, mutilate and otherwise commit, with extreme prejudice, anatomically inappropriate behaviours on some of the ugliest physiology she has ever seen…_and what's worse is these spuds make Monkey Fist look good and there ain't enough brain soap to clean that concept out of my mind. _

Making her move while the gang was still disorganized she sashays to the closest 'servant', the dirty white smoke flowing around her as it billows around the gym. As she slowly slips her jean jacket off her shoulders to the floor the attractive woman pulls her shoulders back to thrust her breasts more prominently through her green t-shirt. The action causes the gang member to direct his gaze to her chest.

Shego smirks evilly as she gloats to herself, "_Gotchya!" _ Then she quips sarcastically, "Lesson time, boys!"

Her right leg swiftly swings up in a roundhouse kick connecting shin to head, the resounding crack of a broken skull echoing through the gym is followed by the dull thump of a body crumpling to the floor.

The sudden collapse of their compatriot stuns the remainder of the gang into inaction; their intended target was supposed to be incoherent and terrified, an easy mark, especially it being a woman and this confused them.

Following through the motion of her right leg Shego plants it down then continues the turning momentum using her left leg for a reverse roundhouse on another target, the force of the impact snapping the neck. Planting that leg down she finds herself facing a little left of her starting point and looks into the face of another cultist…_his eyes look glazed…like he's stoned or something…_a straight kick to the chest of the third thug puts him out of action with broken ribs at which point the remainder of the gang finally reacts to the not so helpless victim.

As her leg sweep takes out one ruffian, Shego sees another pulling a chain from around his waist. Charging she drives her feet into his chest with a flying kick, feeling the sternum give way as she uses his torso as a springboard to launch herself into a back flip, landing on her feet with her back to another Servant. Surprised by the young woman's movement the gangster is stunned by an elbow smash to the head. Spinning around she follows with a punch to the face, breaking nasal cartilage and knocking out teeth, rendering him senseless. Sidestepping a cultist's attempt at a tackle Shego yanks at the back of his collar as he goes past, causing him to flip backwards and land flat on his back cracking his head against the floor and forcing the air out his lungs.

As Shego turns she takes a punch to the face. With a feral grin she shakes off the hit and counterattacks with a straight kick to her attacker's chest, relishing the sound of more ribs breaking. Another reverse roundhouse takes out another hoodlum only to leave her open to being grabbed from behind. Pinned she observes another goon advance to take advantage. Using her grappler's grip for leverage she brings up both legs to launch a double kick to the advancing man's face, breaking his jaw and spewing teeth onto the floor. Bringing her feet back down she demonstrates her flexibility, arcing her right leg back and up to stun her captor with a hook kick to the back of his head, affecting her release. Grabbing his right arm Shego applies a wrist lock then executes a roundhouse kick to his face for good measure while blocking a kick to her head with her left arm. She fends off a series of attacks, maintaining the wrist lock, and counterattacking all the while levering his arm above her head as if they were ballroom dancing. Deciding she has had enough of the dance sequence…_bored now…_Shego flips her dazed partner to the floor, dislocating his shoulder in the process.

Shego looks up in time to see a hoodlum attempt to brain her with a piece of steel pipe. Dodging the weapon's swing she kicks it high in the air. Reversing her kick she breaks her assailant's collar bone with an axe kick and as the pipe drops down she redirects it with her foot to clobber another punk unconscious.

_"They're not coordinated…Drakken's henchmen fight better than this…they appear to be drugged, kinda like zombies…that's it, they're just trying to swarm me...time to take a page out of Kimmie's book, time to manoeuvre." _Deciding on a change in venue Shego runs up the bleachers so she could see over the smoke screen.

At the top Shego turns about and straight kicks two pursuers back down, causing them to fly through the air and land on the bleachers, bones breaking as they roll to the floor. A roundhouse kick to the left, a backhand to the right and a jab to the front takes out three more brutes. There being no more playmates at the top she glances over the gym floor to notice the smoke beginning to dissipate, the exit doors now visible along the perimeter and a fire lit at centre court; the remaining cultists were more visible and only a very few appeared to be remaining.

Shego handsprings her way down to the basketball court to kick another hood in the chest and without looking takes out one behind her with a back kick. Before she could recover she is grabbed from behind by a goon substantially larger than the others. With a playful smile the woman reaches behind and grabs his crotch forcefully, eliciting a definite grunt of pain from her assailant. Despite her grip the thug refuses to let go; releasing her grip she delivers a vicious elbow smash to his face causing him to release her as he grabs his nose. Turning swiftly she hits him with a jab to the stomach, following through with an uppercut sending him flying unconscious into the bleachers.

The raven haired chainsaw barely had time to notice, with satisfaction, her lines of sight improving with the thinning of the smoke before spinning quickly to the snick of a switchblade. Catching the would-be slasher's wrist in mid-thrust, a smirk crosses Shego's face as she crushes the bones. Almost immediately the click of a gun safety reaches her ears and without another thought grabs the former knife-wielder by the belt, turns and throws him into the gunman, the pistol flying from his grasp, the knocking of heads granting each an involuntary nap.

Quickly scanning the battlefield she finds no more opponents standing and the smoke mostly gone. Picking up the gun she strips it down, crushing the magazine; at that point she hears a slow steady clapping from the side. Looking over she sees a large man at one of the side exits matching the description given by the vice-principal.

"Ahh, Your Emerald Radiance, you always did provide the very best violence," offered the man with apparent admiration. "Now, there I was, believing that removing one of the jade monkeys would have been sufficient to forestall the return of the Monkey Master. Imagine my surprise when I discover not only were monkey monks present when they should not have been but the idol was recovered and my flunky defeated by another legend, the Dragon Ninja."

Gloating, Simi Yan continues, "And now I not only have you here, I know where the whelps are; I'll crush you all and the master will soon be unfettered. Since you are here I will destroy you first; as talented as you are your ancestor lost her powers long ago and you have not her strength to withstand me. Even the power of the gloves you crafted is but a pale imitation of the true mystic nature of the Dragon Ninja's ability; and you are not even wearing those."

His eyes drew her. They were neither merely dark nor even black, nor were there even any eyeballs; they seemed as grasping voids, joining together into one large pit which attempted to envelop her, threatening to shred her soul with overwhelming despair; a dread she only experienced in nightmares. She watched, anguished, her parent's car get crushed, Jan's torso ripped apart by the pipe bomb, the bullets stitching across Jayne's body, Sonia Flores incinerated in a fiery car crash, the Lorwardians shooting apart her Citadel of Doom, the Yono's black fog leaching the very life from the land, a limp and apparently lifeless Kim hanging upside down by the ankle as her spine is ripped out of her body….

Suddenly, and unbidden, Shego's powers spring forth, encasing her hands with intense verdant auras and her eyes flaring beyond emerald to an intense neon green. She reacts with measured defiance, "Ohhh. No. You don't. I'm not gonna let you crush Kimmie, not this time, not ever…she's all I got left…**she's mine**!" The flaring eyes shred the blackness revealing a perplexed Simi Yan.

Quickly cupping her hands together Shego conjures a bright neon green ball of energy and throws it at Simi Yan before he can do more than widen his eyes in surprise and fear. The verdant sphere, exploding with a crashing boom, thrusts the demon through the wall of the gym and outside in a pile of concrete, cinder blocks and dust. The glow around her hands trail motes of energy in a delicate wake as she charges forward. As the furious and determined woman pursues her target she begins hearing an unearthly wail. She arrives outside to witness a greasy black vapour issue from the mouth of the body and disappear into some nearby shadows.

Shego, confused, looks warily about for a several minutes before examining the apparent victim—discovering him merely unconscious although battered a fair bit—then returning inside where she gazes upon her handiwork. Many of the 'Servants of Yono' were still unconscious, with a good proportion bleeding from some cranial orifice, limbs at unnatural angles indicated those with bone breaks, and the sound of ragged breathing singled out those with broken ribs or even punctured lungs-one was even throwing up by the bleachers. A baleful Shego looks upon her victims with disdain, "Consider yourselves schooled…class dismissed."

Pulling a communicator from her pants pocket she speaks into it with a weary voice, "Jhessy, get me boyfriend."

"Sure thing sis; you okay, you sound stressed…oh, here he is."

"Yes ma'am."

"Jonesy, I need a cleanup crew in the gym at Go City Central High ten minutes ago," the GoCorp CEO ordered with a grim voice, "I just worked over about a dozen or so spuds who called themselves Servants of Yono and I think I just met Simi Yan and took him out too but I don't think permanently. Make sure the crew is escorted by a troop of dragon disciples, geared up for a hostile chemical environment. Send recon teams to Westpark Highschool and Eastwood Secondary…assume a chemical environment and the potential for hostiles as well. Mobilize a company for each location with air support. I want prisoners for interrogation…I don't care what physical condition they're in as long as they're alive. You got that Jonesy?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Use the Cranial Drain. I want to know everything. No exceptions."

"Ma'am, are you sure? I know the memory retrieval rate is a hundred percent but the mortality rate is pretty high."

She looks balefully upon the collection of casualties groaning and writhing on the floor before her and glances around at the destruction committed around her.

"Ma'am?" Jonesy asked tentatively.

Shego growls, "At this point I have no interest in their well being as long as I get information. Their leader wants Kimmie dead…this is personal." She then pulls out a green and black communication device and punches in a series of codes.

At the dispatch centre for Go City Emergency Services a communications attendant calls for the supervisor, "Hey, Barney. I just got an Operations Protocol signal from Shego. She's declared Go City Central High, Westpark Highschool and Eastwood Secondary, plus a two block radius around each as Team Go exclusive operational areas."

"It's about time Team Go cleaned out those festering rat holes. But then I heard she took a bad hit when they brought in Electronique," replied Barney to the comms attendant, Wojo.

Eagerly Wojo exhorts, "I bet she's all set for some payback after being out of action for so long."

"Yeah," Barney mutters thoughtfully then turns to another denizen of the comms centre, "Fish, would you send out emails to the appropriate services?"

The close to retirement operator grouses, "Fine, I'll get on it; don't worry about me getting carpal tunnel, I'll manage somehow."

* * *

Percy stretches in his office chair after entering the last of the modifications to the experiment protocols for the space station mission; looking at the clock on the monitor he sees that it's 6:16am…_Huh, might as well have some breakfast before heading home…_Going to the mini-fridge he retrieves some leftover wings and pizza and chocolate milk from supper with his niece the evening before. Sitting back down to enjoy his repast he glances at the external hard drive his niece had brought from the future, still plugged into his desktop. _"32-terrabytes, I just got used to gigabytes…but then I remember when a 64 kilobyte RAM was a big deal." _Percy mused to himself.

As he stared blankly at the device something tugged at Percy's memory. Quickly putting down his meal he returns to his computer and pulls up the list of folders that are on the external drive. Ever since he first started opening folders he discovered they could only be opened in sequence and only with a password derived from successfully understanding the ramifications of some conundrum in the previous one. Percy clicks on the next unopened folder and is prompted for a password. On a hunch he enters '147 years' and presses enter.

What is presented seems almost overwhelming, a file over eight and a half terabytes in size on his niece's psychological profile. Glancing down the list of sub-files, Percy's eyes stop briefly on the titles of some of them: Behaviour Modifications…Brain Tap…Brain Switch…Attitudinator…Reverse Polarizer…Neurocompliance Chip…Moodulator…Treatment of psychopathic and sociopathic tendencies…Selective applications of retrograde amnesia…Repercussions to intense negative emotional triggers….

Dr. Percival Green set up the coffee maker in his office to brew an extra strong batch of coffee then makes a quick trip to the Space Centre's commissary. In tune with the pace of work most scientists pursued at the Space Centre, the administrators of the commissary stocked libations and food stuffs that would be most in demand. Thus it was not surprising that Dr. Green returned with a few extra-large cans of energy drinks, several energy bars and miscellaneous snacks to tide him over….

* * *

After calling in sick at the college, Shego spends the day after her first encounter with Simi Yan ensconced in her executive office going over Agent Jones' preliminary reports. She also continued perusing the myriad collection of simply laughable and paranoid suppositions the Air Force had concerning her family after the comet incident.

After reading her mother's latest medical examination before she died, Shego dejectedly tosses the folder onto her desk, the papers sliding out and spreading out over it. Angry at what seems to be another failing of hers she mutters to herself in frustration, "What the hell. I hallucinate hearing Jhessy's voice, I forget that I'm bi and now I have to be reminded that Momma was five months pregnant when she died. Figure like I really need more guilt to deal with."

Glancing over to her desk Shego picks up her mother's ultrasound images with hesitation. She realizes, as she begins examining the images, that this child would have been born normal, without any super powers…_I would've envied you kiddo…._ Her eyes slowly savour each depiction of her developing sibling; the last image Shego caresses delicately, her fingers daintily tracing the curves of the baby's shape; examining every perfect detail. However, her vision keeps returning to the little pink sticky note at the top of the ultrasound image upon which is written boldly in pen…**girl.**

Shego stares wearily at the ceiling, "Aww crap!"

* * *

**Operational Log**

27 May 2029 (Internal Chronology) Justine Flanner, Infiltrator – Science Division

_Infiltrating GoCorp turned out to be an inspiration…naturally. Although Shego is still maintaining her heroic persona she is secretly taking over the world using economic means. It also appears she is using scientific knowledge from the future to construct advanced technology to assist in her endeavours, mind control seeming to be at the forefront. Unfortunately, I was discovered and only managed to escape using my Chrono-Manipulator. I have not been able to contact neither Brick Flagg nor Rufus' 1,489 and 284; although I sent a message to Brick's chrono to meet me on Labour Day at the food court at the Middleton Mall. My attempts to travel to the future have met with failure; something is blocking travel or, worse, the future no longer exists and although unlikely it is a theoretical possibility. I plan to exercise a theory I discussed with Wade some time ago: build a kinematic continuum disruptor to access a, hopefully, parallel dimension, move forward in time then jump back. I should have few problems since I was able to build one using off-the-shelf parts as my younger self. This time I know the theory is sound and workable and I have more resources available to me._

* * *

**Disclaimer: **_Kim Possible belongs to Disney, only the story is mine. I don't write for adoration…care I not for remuneration…I just write for inspiration_

_The plot bunny for this story was originally conceived by the last scene in_ "The Twin Factor" _with additional inspiration from_ "A Sitch in Time" and "Stop Team Go"_._

**Willie Pete**: _Military slang for white phosphorous; an intensely hot incendiary grenade or shell that also creates an effective smoke screen almost instantly_.

**IFF:** _Identification Friend or Foe; a device which sends a radio signal identifying the vehicle it is transmitting from; usually employed in airliners for air traffic controllers to track flights and by military aircraft to help decide who you can shoot down and those you shouldn't._

_A peanut butter cookie from Rufus 3000 to the reader who recognizes the names of the emergency services comms attendants. ;)_


End file.
